Aamir Khan To Take A Bold Stand For The Future of Theatrical Medium

Mumbai, September 6 - Post the Covid-19 pandemic, the theatrical has been one of the badly affected mediums of entertainment. While the business has returned to normalcy for the large-scale entertainers, it is still not the same for the mid to low-budget films as it was before the pandemic.

The mid-budget films have been a driving force in generating revenue for the industry over the years and one of the major reasons for the non-superstar films not performing as frequently as they used to be at the box office is the negligence of the filmmakers towards theatrical medium in announcing the digital rights of their movies even before the big screen release.



The side effect of having a premature OTT deal can already be seen in the decrease in footfalls in theatres, especially for mid to low-budget films, as paying audiences are ready to wait to watch the film for free rather than going to theatres since they exactly know when the film is coming to digital platforms.

This overall ongoing trend needs a drastic change in the mindset of the filmmakers for the future of the theatrical medium which must be protected for the industry's own benefit. While there's a long way to go, the change seems to be happening and it's coming from none other than superstar and filmmaker Aamir Khan.

According to the report by Pinkvilla, Aamir Khan has been discussing a game-changing idea of not selling the digital rights of his films before theatrical release with all the stakeholders. It is said that "the actor's vision is to revive the social comedy genre by keeping it exclusive for the big screen for at least 12 weeks".



One of the alarming chatters ongoing within the Bollywood film industry is that OTT platforms are dictating terms and forcing filmmakers to release their movies on pre-decided XYZ dates even if it is not suitable for the film's business. The digital platforms are also deciding the film's prices by keeping the box-office clause in the contract.

"Aamir is willing to sell and value his film based on the audience reception to the content on theatrical release. With no logo of digital players on posters and trailers, Aamir aims to keep his communication clear – experience his content only on the big screen. His idea is to go back to the good old days when viewers didn’t have any idea about the satellite premieres", the report adds.

Meanwhile, Aamir Khan has several films in the pipeline under his production house, Aamir Khan Productions. The superstar will be returning to the big screen with Sitare Zameen Par in which he plays the lead role. The movie is announced for Christmas release but as per reports, it will be delayed to next year.

Stay tuned...