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| Bengali films feel marketing pinch |
| BS Reporter / Kolkata Mar 30, 2009, 00:14 IST |
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Bengali movies should improve on marketing its movies and build a stronger distribution network to survive.
At a seminar held at Bengal National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BNCCI), Arijit Dutta, owner of Priya Entertainment said, “Bengali movies should be marketed better in order to attract audiences.”
According to Dutta, till five years ago, there were 800 theatres in West Bengal, but it was now down to 300.
“Multiplexes are not for Bengali movies as they do not run enough shows. Moreover, ticket prices at multiplexes are too much to attract audiences for a Bengali movie. Quality of Bengali movies, too, do not support Rs 150-200 ticket pricing,” Dutta admitted.
“Moreover, Bengali movies need proper infrastructure. We need a film city of around 1000 acres which should be reasonably close to the city, like in Burdwan or Birbhum. There should also be proper administration to curb piracy. For instance, there are 16,000 video halls in Bengal of which 1,000 video halls are illegal.
Every cable operator encourages piracy. Four years ago, Bengal had a 100-odd producers, now there are only four. Again, Bengal had 150 film distributors, but is now down to only six,” Dutta added. According to actor Prasenjit Chaterjee, the turnover of the Bengali movie industry was just around Rs 200 crore.
“The West Bengal landscape offers a breathtaking canvas for filmmakers, but unfortunately, film makers do not exploit it properly. The Bengali movie industry could package entertainment and tourism, for any language,” Chatterjee said. According to director Gautam Halder, producers of Bengali movies should look at other revenue earning options, like the internet and music royalty. This would help the industry revive.
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