100% theatre occupancy will not translate into 100% box office collection just yet: Kiccha Sudeep

Kannada superstar Kiccha Sudeep’s latest instalment in the Kotigobba universe, Kotigobba 3, directed by Shivakarthik, is releasing in theatres on October 14. The film is one of two big-ticket movies to hit screens only two weeks after the Karnataka government allowed movie theatres to operate at 100% capacity. In fact, since theatres reopened after the second wave of the pandemic, a lot of filmmakers had been clamoring for 100% capacity to be allowed and, in the process, held on to their films till such time that their demand was met. This, of course, became a talking point when Sudeep addressed the media at a gathering at his house in Bengaluru recently.

Not one to mince his words, Sudeep weighed in on the issue, saying, “Nothing’s back to normal. Just because theatres have opened up at 100% occupancy does not mean that it will translate into 100% revenue at the box office. The Covid-19 pandemic affected has affected a lot of livelihoods and even though crowds may come to theatres during the first, second or third week, there is no denying that there is a scarcity of money. It takes a bare minimum of Rs 500, if not more, for a lower middle-class family of four to go to a local single-screen theatre. For an upper middle-class family, this goes up to at least Rs 1,000. A lot of these people have lost their jobs or businesses during the pandemic and are still recouping from that. Having said that, we cannot stop what we have been doing. It will take time for things to go back to normal; we cannot get overexcited now. Yes, cinemas have been releasing; ready to take chances at the box office. This is the beginning of a new journey. Our focus is only on ensuring that people who come to theatres get their money's worth entertainment."