Industry
Regional cinema's box office struggle: Why Marathi, Bengali, Punjabi films are losing out
Summary
Despite some successes, many regional films struggle as viewers become more discerning. Post-covid, audiences prefer light-hearted and nostalgic films celebrating local culture.
The regional language film industry has been struggling to stay afloat, producing only a handful of hits such as Bohurupi (Bengali) and Baipan Bhari Deva (Marathi) even during the prolonged absence of Bollywood blockbusters. Experts said audiences in these markets, like Hindi movie viewers, have also become selective and few films have been able to meet their expectations.
“It hasn’t been a great time for films made in smaller regional languages. Like Hindi, the successes have been few and far between," said Rahul Puri, managing director of Mukta Arts and Mukta A2 Cinemas. “Television networks are no longer buying satellite rights the way they used to."
There have been exceptions, though. Marathi films Navra Maza Navsacha 2 and Dharmaveer 2 earned over ₹20 crore and ₹15 crore, respectively, while Punjabi comedy Carry on Jatta 3 clocked in almost ₹50 crore in the domestic market. However, the overall scenario remains dull.
“These languages have not really managed to take advantage of bigger industries like Hindi not doing well, nor have they filled the gap left by Bollywood titles not releasing consistently," Puri added.
Experts emphasised that much like the producers of films in Hindi and southern languages, the makers of Punjabi, Marathi and Bengali films suffered from an over-reliance on satellite TV and digital rights, avenues that are now providing dwindling returns.
Streaming platforms had started to snap up films during the initial phase of enthusiasm in the Indian market and this led star prices to escalate significantly.
However, over time, the content didn’t live up to audience expectations and interest in them started to fade.
Linguistic limits
Film producer and distributor Sunny Khanna said that after the pandemic, the success ratio for regional language films has been even lower than for Hindi movies.
“There is also a realisation that the films will be available on streaming platforms soon enough and audiences will only come to cinemas when there is something larger-than-life and out-of-the-box on offer," Khanna said.
Given their limited budgets, regional language films have not been able to cash in on the space made available by the erratic release of bigger Bollywood films, especially in single-screen cinemas in small towns, over the past few weeks.
Still, films such as Baipan Bhari Deva (Marathi) and Carry on Jatta 3(Punjabi) have performed well, reflecting the growing acceptance of family dramas and comedies in regional markets, Devang Sampat, managing director of Cinepolis India, pointed out.
Malayalam films Romancham and 2018 also struck a chord with audiences, further showcasing the preference for engaging storytelling and cultural relevance.
“Post-covid, audiences in regional industries have shown a preference for light-hearted entertainment, nostalgic narratives, and films that celebrate local culture. Historical dramas, comedies, and social issue-driven films have particularly found an audience. However, some experimental films in smaller markets have struggled due to limited promotional budgets," Sampat said.
Unlike Bollywood, these industries struggle with scaling their reach beyond their linguistic audience, he added.
