After the film ‘Pushpa Part One’, which has earned more than Rs 80 crore in the Hindi market so far, filmmaker Manish Shah is also going to release another film ‘Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo’ by its hero Allu Arjun in Hindi on 26 January. In an exclusive conversation, Manish says that the flood of abuses and kisses in Hindi cinema has taken away its family audience from it. In South India, films are still watched with the whole family and that is why these films were taken by the Hindi-speaking audience. Manish also says that Hindi stars should try to increase their acceptance in the South and if this happens, Hindi cinema can also expand better in the southern states of the country. He is preparing to release at least 10 big budget South Indian films in the new year by dubbing them in Hindi along with the release of their native languages.
On the decision of Allu Arjun’s film ‘Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo’ to release in Hindi cinemas on January 26, Manish says, ‘Whenever we watch a film or series with our parents or wife, children And if there is a scene of abuse or kissing, then our first action is to change the channel. Same is the case with OTT. In such a situation, Hindi-speaking audiences adopted South Indian films for family entertainment. The popularity of Hindi versions of these films on satellite channels has proved that cinema is still a medium of family entertainment and for its success it is necessary for the family as well as the people to watch the film.
So what are the steps involved in the process of releasing a South Indian film in Hindi? On asking this, Manish says, ‘Whatever film I buy the rights to release in Hindi. I see them myself first. After that I prepare the script for it in Hindi. I have different directorial teams dubbing different types of films according to the subject matter of these films. Even after the film is dubbed, I watch them again and get their comedy or emotional scenes rewritten by some writers who specialize in them. From taking the dubbing rights of the film till its final copy, I complete the entire process under my supervision.
How much is the challenge for Mumbai stars due to the continued success of South Indian films in Hindi-speaking states? In response, Manish says, ‘South Indian stars have increased their popularity in Hindi speaking states of the country with the help of satellite channels of television. These stars of South Indian films have been adopted by the audience of Hindi speaking states. But, the stars of Hindi films never made any such effort in the South. Movies like ‘Baahubali’ earn Rs 500 crore in Hindi speaking states and since then South Indian movies are doing good business in Hindi states continuously. These films are also a big hit in their states. It is common for a Telugu film of a big star to earn 100 crores only in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana. But, a film of a Hindi star should earn Rs 25 crore even after including all the distribution areas of the South.
So what is the future? ‘Exactly, that’s what is needed.’ Manish Shah says, ‘The biggest stars of Hindi cinema were never worshiped in the South. And not only the stars of today, I am talking about the stars of the past as well. Film stars are worshiped like God in the South. There the first show of a big star’s film starts at 2 pm. If you do a show of a Hindi film here at 9 in the morning, then it becomes difficult to gather the audience. The real stardom of stars is visible only in South India. Temples of stars are built there. Amitabh Bachchan’s temple was not built even during his own strongest stardom era.
