About 70 Malayalam movies were released in the 6 month period from January to June. Although many of these films have won the audience’s favor, Kashwariyam has only 7 films. Reportedly, only 7 films were created around which ran for more days in theatres. Some of the rest of the films came and went quickly, and some were not even released. What is the reason why Malayalam films do not even get the reception that foreign language films get?
When foreign language big budget films like Pushpa, RRR, KGF 2, Beast, Vikram etc. are raking in cash from Kerala, no one is watching Malayalam films. Earlier this year, it was seen that the Malayali audience abandoned even the much hyped big budget films in favor of small budget films. The producers and the theater owners are in a dilemma when the films fail to recover even from the cost.
So far, seven Malayalam films have hit the box office. There are superstar films in it and others that are not. Amal Neerad’s Bhishma Parva with Mammootty in the lead is the movie that filled the theater this time. 100
The film earned more than crores. Mammootty’s Michaelappan was embraced by the audience from day one. The ‘Champico…’ video was the biggest example of that.
Vineeth Srinivasan – Pranav Mohanlal collaboration ‘Hridayam’ is second in the list. The screen chemistry of the Pranav Mohanlal-Kalyani Priyadarshan pair has been taken over by youngsters. The song starting with ‘Darshanna…’ by Darshana – Pranav was also impressive. Hridiya continued its boom in the theater by conquering crores of hearts. The film has a huge collection. Hridiya is the highest grossing film for the producer this year.
There are two miniatures in this collection. Super Sharanya and Joe and Joe. There was a huge crowd in the theater to see Joe and Joe, which did not have a big star cast, but starred young actors like Neslan, Mathew, Nikhil Vimal and others as the central characters. The audience response to Arjun D. Jose’s ‘Joe and Joe’ was beyond expectations. The success of the film was also celebrated by the audience.
Super Sharanya, a small ‘big’ film created waves at the box office with the support of young audience and family audience. Anaswara Rajan, Mamita, Neslan and Arjun Asokan played central roles in the film directed by AD Girish. ‘Jana Gana Mana’, in which Prithviraj – Suraj Venjaramoodu faced each other, also achieved success in the theatre. Director Dijo Jose Antony was able to gather people in the theater.
Crime Thriller – Investigative series ‘Twenty One Grams’ has captivated the audience in theatres. Reportedly, the film managed to make a profit for the producer. K. Madhu – SN Swamy – Mammootty team’s fifth appearance was not in vain. The film received mixed response but was reported to be a hit financially. Navya Nair’s second entry was a hit at the box office. V.K. Prakash’s ‘Oruthee’ and Indran’s starrer ‘Udal’ were also profitable for the producers.
There are other films that didn’t make big hits in theaters but didn’t lose money. However, the fact is that most of the films did not make a huge crowd at the theatres. Films like KGF cost crores from Kerala. So, the problem is the Malayali audience or the content? People are reluctant to come and see a movie that doesn’t have any particular appeal, be it a Malayalam or foreign language film. This is a proof that the arrival of OTT has changed the cinema taste.
Theaters are now buzzing with movies that cater to the youth and satisfy their taste buds. Bhishma Parva is an example of that. Lack of mass action films also keeps people away from theatres. Things have come to a stage where the theaters are dedicated to films that thrill, delight, satisfy and appeal to the under-35s. The general opinion is that the closer the film is to the audience, the closer they will accept the film.