What are the biggest challenges facing the Indian entertainment industry today

'India is a big market with room for everyone'. The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) will be holding Frames 2002, its annual convention on the business of entertainment on March 15 and 16 in Mumbai.

Times News Network spoke to Yash Chopra, director, producer, distributor and chairman of its entertainment committee, on the challenges facing the industry.

What are the biggest challenges facing the Indian entertainment industry today?

Piracy of films and music is the biggest threat. There are agreements between film producers, the Indian Motion Picture Producers Association, the government, TV channels and cable operators. But they remain agreements.

Implementation is not easy—it’s almost impossible because films can be pirated in so many countries.

For Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (K3G), which you distributed, you bombarded the market with an unprecedented 600 prints worldwide, partly in anticipation of business and partly to beat the pirates. Isn’t this an expensive solution?

Of course. Each print costs nearly Rs 80,000 to make. Moreover, I’ve spent about 50,000 pounds (Rs 35 lakh) in the UK and $50,000 (Rs 25 lakh) in the US for vigilance to prevent piracy for just three to four weeks. Longer than that, I cannot afford.

Today, I find myself in a strange fight. The pirated DVDs of K3G are already out. I hold the DVD rights for K3G, but I cannot officially release the DVD until a decent theatrical interval. Let me give you an example of how bad it is.

When we made Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (DDLJ), we released the DVD six-and-a-half years after its theatrical release. For Mohabbatein, the DVD was released after a year. For K3G, we’re having to release it after two months.

The biggest business so far has been made by Hum Aapke Hain Koun?, released eight years ago. DDLJ comes second, and K3G did unbelievable business in Mumbai and overseas, but it will not touch HAHK, because of the growing piracy.

What role has Ficci played in helping the entertainment industry gear up for the challenges before it?

In 1999, when Ficci first held a seminar for the entertainment industry, it lobbied with the ministry of information and broadcasting to secure industry status for it. This was followed by a finance ministry notification that permitted the Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI) to finance films. An increasing number of films are being insured.

Ficci is also making representations on our behalf for reductions in customs duty and tax on foreign exchange earnings, which the infotech industry enjoys. It also tackles a range of other issues, including technology, legal aspects, marketing, advertising and insurance.

You’ve produced your own films so far. To what extent are you corporatised, so that you could avail of institutional finance, if need be?

Yash Raj Films functions like a corporate entity. We have a CEO and professionally-run departments for production, finance, distribution and design, and we’re building a studio in Andheri. Until today, we have not needed money from anybody. I produce my own films.

I make one or two films a year. But now we’re stepping up distribution with three new films, Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai, Mujhse Dosti Karoge and Saathiya, all with new directors, some with new faces and music directors.

The Ficci-Arthur Andersen report itself has considerably scaled down its enthusiastic projections of the Indian entertainment boom. But you seem quite optimistic.

Yes. India is such a big market, there’s room for everyone. It’s purely a question of making a good film.

Sony, Warner Bros, Universal and others have been eyeing the Indian market, with a view to distributing and producing Indian films. Some already are. How will this affect the Indian players?

They have big money. Yet, last year, only three films were big hits - Gadar, Lagaan and K3G. With such a poor figure, it doesn’t matter who makes the film. You can’t make money without talent. It’s the men behind the machines that matter.

How come you are optimistic despite the crash in the music, overseas and satellite markets?

The fact is there is room for business. Raaz, a film without big stars, is doing good business. Gadar had Sunny Deol, not such a big star, a new girl and a little known director, but it broke records. The crash in the markets will even out.

K3G did better overseas than many foreign films. Even within India, films are only sold for more money than before, not less. New multiplexes are coming up, ticket prices are rising.

NRI nostalgia has been dictating the themes of recent mainstream cinema. Shouldn’t you be looking at a wider, global market?

We think young NRIs should identify with Indian films. But our films work because we respect Indian tradition. They are not NRI films. Our market is India. But for the overseas market, we had DDLJ sub-titled in seven languages, including English, French, German, Arabic and Malay. And we dubbed Dil To Pagal Hai into French.