Actor Kamal Hassan came out with a detailed statement on Sunday, justifying his decision to air ‘Viswaroopam‘ on DTH platform, a day ahead of its theatrical release.
“Screening Viswaroopam on DTH only once before its release will not affect collections in the box-office. Only 3 per cent of Tamil Nadu population have DTH connections in their homes,” he said.
Kamal Hassan added: “In that 3 per cent, only 1.5 per cent are expected to subscribe for Viswaroopam. The film can not be recorded and it can be watched only once.”
Plans are on to collect Rs 1000 per DTH connection to watch ‘Viswaroopam‘.
“There is kitchen at each and every home. But people go to hotels. There are portraits of God at home. But people go to Tirupati and other temples,” Kamal Hassan said, adding that people will sure come to theatres to watch ‘Viswaroopam‘.
‘Viswaroopam’ – Crucial meeting today
Even as theatre owners are firm in their move to oppose Kamal Hassan‘s decision to air ‘Viswaroopam’ on DTH platform a day before its theatrical release, a meeting of producers has been convened today to discuss the issue.
“The meeting will debate on Kamal Hassan‘s unique initiative and will discuss its pros and cons. At the end of the meeting, a decision to either support or opppose the move will be taken,” sources said.
They however added that the producers are likely to support Kamal Hassan‘s decision since it (selling films to DTH players) would bring additional revenues to them.
Meanwhile, theatre owners association president ‘Abirami’ Ramanathan said Kamal Hassan‘s DTH decision would affect theatre revenues.
“We are already suffering from a lot of issues and this will add to our woes,” he said.
Kamal Hassan’s Vishwaroopam Extravaganza
Actor Kamal Hassan’s spectacular Vishwaroopam audio launch function in three cities in a single day is the talk of the tinsel town. The star and his team traveled on the eight-seater Learjet 60XR chartered flight that had all the modern amenities such as internet and satellite phone.
This flight cost Kamal Hassan around Rs. 5 lakhs just for a few hours of travel but it was all worth the money with the audio turning out to be a huge success.
Interestingly, this is the first time an audio has been launched in three different cities in a single day; a feat that no director has achieved thus far!
Next post
