HYDERABAD: Leading Tollywood production houses and distributors on Wednesday opposed the Telangana exhibitors' demand for an immediate revenue-sharing model in theatres.
Representatives from major banners, including Mythri Movie Makers, Sithara Entertainments, Shine Screens and SVC Productions, said the crisis was affecting exhibitors, distributors and producers alike.
Producers oppose exhibitors' ultimatum
Producers Yalamanchili Ravi Shankar, S Naga Vamsi, Sahu Garapati, Sudhakar Cherukuri and Venkata Satish Kilaru said the exhibitors' ultimatum could hurt the market further.
They said the deadlines sounded more like "threats" than efforts to find a joint solution.
The producers said several big-budget Telugu films were already in the final stages of production. They added that producers had already spent nearly 70-80% of the budgets on these films.
They warned that any sudden change in the sharing system would increase pressure on producers and distributors.
Open to talks on future model
The producers clarified that they were not against a percentage-sharing model.
However, they said the industry should discuss the issue in detail before applying the system to future films.
The producers and distributors also pointed to the poor condition of several single-screen theatres in the Telugu states.
They said many theatres needed better projection systems, sound quality, seating and air-conditioning. They also called for improved maintenance standards.
They argued that a revenue-sharing model alone would not bring audiences back to theatres. They said cinema halls must improve facilities and viewing standards.
Industry facing many problems
The stakeholders said changing audience habits were hurting the theatrical business.
They also blamed weak theatrical content, shorter OTT windows and rising production costs for the slowdown.
The producers suggested grading theatres based on infrastructure, seating capacity and location before applying a common sharing model.
They also called for talks on online ticket-booking fees, maintenance charges and other theatre-related costs.