The ‘National Cinema Day’ proved to be a wake-up call for the Indian film industry

This Friday has been designated National Cinema Day by movie theater operators all throughout India. The tickets for any movie across India have been sold for just Rs. 75 in the multiplexes.   Movie lovers all throughout the country have responded enthusiastically to the celebrations.

Almost all movie showings have been completely sold out two days in advance. Despite purchasing their tickets online, many people still stood in line to watch the movies. At every chain of theaters around the country, the audiences were surreal. ‘The national movie day celebrations have been very beneficial for the films ‘Brahmastra’ and ‘Chup.’  Yesterday, ‘Brahamstara’ earned a record number of footfalls than some of the biggest Bollywood blockbusters ever.

The audience’s overwhelming response was not what the trade anticipated. Trade experts and executives in the film industry have taken notice of this overwhelming response. Because it has been an odd situation in recent years to see houses full with boards everywhere. The house full of boards is not seen anywhere in the nation unless it is a major film. But if we think about what occurred yesterday, it was totally unexpected. No major film was released. The “Brahmastara” had been around for two weeks. Chup by Balki was the sole noteworthy release. But the movies did very well, according to the market.

This analysis demonstrates just how much the price of movie tickets affects the theater and its bottom line.  The cost of movie tickets has significantly increased since COVID. The family audience started to favor OTTs over movie theaters as prices increased. But yesterday, families went back to the movies to enjoy their favourite films.

For movie makers and exhibitors, the reception to National Cinema Day has been eye-opening. It’s time to give the cost of the tickets some thought.

Interestingly, several exhibitors have declared that the celebration will last for a week with the same pricing after seeing how the National Cinema Day was received. The southern areas, however, chose not to take part in the national film day celebrations due to commercial considerations. However, several multiplexes have reduced their fees for this weekend by more than usual.