coming soon!! "RIP-KFI", a different movie

For some years I had left watching Kannada movies since I didn’t want to get inspired and become a another long machu seena or maada of Kalasipalya....
A few of my friends who are keen abt KFI insisted me to watch Mungaru male and Duniya.. These movies made me realize that there is still some talent left in the Industry. Also, these were movies which made me gain back my interest in Kannada films...Later ‘Aa dinagalu’ and Milana came out, I think I got a feeling that industry is bouncing back........ after these so many movies came out.. BUT ..

A film industry which has seen 75+ years of existence and still struggling shows that there is something wrong. The general perception is that quality of Kannada films is slipping day by day and the market is shrinking also. Where are the theaters in Majestic road?

We have to get innovative, not look for dvds of successful Tamil, Telugu films. ;-)

Life in Karnataka provides enough fodder for script writers, just look around.

Keeping that argument aside, let’s take a look at KFI. Lets do some self introspection.

For an average person in Karnataka, it looks like sinking boat. I feel that, KFI is not able to market itself or create a good value proposition out of content which it generates.

Why??

Bcoz

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Kannada film makers are still in the era of 1940’s where they think that film boxes shipped out of the Gandhi nagar office would bring them revenue.

Look at ocean of opportunity still untapped; the film producers are chasing non-value adding things!! The best example is closing down internet sites which are promoting KFI. How can one even think of throwing the hammer on their own feet?

The viral marketing can be best seen in sites like kannadaaudio.com or videogirmit.com which links the videos uploaded on different sites and creates a fan base of its own in long run. One cannot sit in Hotel Capitol or Kanishka, have a press release and expect audience to rush to theater on next day. The idea is to bombard the public with so many images, promos, content for the movie that it becomes a "can't miss" event.

One more major problem with our industry is that they have accepted that the best we can do is “mediocracy”.

The below average competent people are not fit to run the modern age cinema nor they understand the new business structure, complex commercial framework on which it operates.

Today, majority of the profits from a motion picture release do not come from box office ticket sales. The bulk of the profits come from a myriad of other marketing (revenue generating too!) avenues.

• VHS
• DVD/CD/Blue-ray
• Toys
• Games
• T-shirt
• Other merchandise
• Itunes or selling songs on internet, mobile
• Movie sponsors,
• Location sponsors,
• Television programming,
• Musical records (CD,Audio Cassette)
• Stage shows,
• Remake/dubbing rights,
• Award Ceremony,
• Trailers,
• And the last is Theater ticket sales.

If you look at KFI and see how it has fared in each of these aspects:

VHS/DVD/CD/Blue-ray – To produce a single piece of DVD which can contain upto 4 movies; we need to wait 3 years!!

Imagine waiting for 3 years to see a movie at your comfort in home! Doesn’t it sound so foolish??

Toys/Games/T-shirt/Other Merchandise – Whats that? might be the Q if you ask can I get a toy of Jogi (Character played by Shivarajkumar) once the movie is released. I would ask these producers of such movies, ever watched Toy story movie or ate in McDonald’s?

Itunes/Mobile ringtones – Even though few of Kannada songs are listed in the major network providers of India, its still a long way to go. There is virtually no presence on Itunes and other websites which “promote” music.

Movie/Location sponsors – KFI is slow aping the Hindi cinema but has miles to go considering the limitations it has imposed on itself.

Television programming – Promotion of movie is not equal to conducting a dial in program with stars. It involves a dedicated campaign and till date, I have not seen any Kannada movie making a campaign which made me feel ‘wow’.

Stage shows: Gone are the days when stars used to feel that doing stage shows is second class and it’s similar to touring talkies. The artists, producers who are crying that there is no market should form a group and go around the world, promote their movies, stars etc. I don’t remember a single world tour conducted under the banner of KFI. Do you?

Remake/ dubbing rights: We are good in copying but we won’t let others display their content in our language. So, a person not knowing English can see Avatar movie only in Hindi Tamil or Telugu. Not in Kannada, ok?

Trailers : Movie is an art form and if its good, it can attract audience irrespective of language. Is there any rule that trailers of Kannada movies should be screened in theaters playing Kannada movie only? What about the concept of adding new audience? Did somebody forget about that?

Anyway, I have not seen trailers of upcoming Kannada movie even in theaters playing Kannada movies.

Award ceremony: This might sound crazy! But it’s true. It’s a way of promoting the industry in different parts of the world and introducing the glamorous stars to audience away from home. Have you ever seen a Kannada cinema awards function in Dubai, London or USA? If not, then you know why KFI has not been able to grow beyond the Indian ocean.

I liked the patience of average Kannada audience who is still waiting for the day when the directors would make movies of his/her choice. But I think its high time now. I am not seeing any ascending growth; lets be more open and tell them how to run the show.

Let’s not put all the blame on the punters sitting in the by-lanes of Gandhinagar. We have to wake them up from deep slumber and show them how the world has advanced. It’s not just enough if one knows the basics of movie making, one has to know the art of selling it also.

Disclaimer: My intention is not to critize the KFI or the current situation. We all want good things to happen to Kannada cinema, that’s why folks like us are putting down our time and effort on making these analyses on KFI.

Kone maathu "Namma mane chennagilla nodokke antha pakkada manege hogokke aguthha...banni namma mane ne swachha maadona...namma bhashe ulisona...namma Kannada thaayiya hesru ulisona..."