MG Srinivas’ Old Monk eyeing Jan-Feb release plan; film sold to leading Hindi distributors

Just over a month ago, when OTTplay had reached out to director-actor MG Srinivas about the status of his next, Old Monk, he had said that these days, making a film was easy, releasing it was not. “People will come to the theatre only if the whole film is good. Filmmakers like me, who do not have star-driven movies, are completely dependent on word-of-mouth publicity, which takes time to build up, for which you need to have a solid distribution plan to ensure your film stays in theatres long enough,” he had said back then, adding, “Everyone who has been holding back their films wants to release them now. We can’t ask someone not to release now, but will hopefully find a date that’s not too problematic. The issue here is that we are not only competing with other Kannada films. Most of our main centers are also big business markets for films in other languages, specifically Telugu, Tamil and Hindi. For instance, there are biggies like Annatthe, Sooryavanshi, Pushpa The Rise, RRR, etc., which are keenly awaited here too and multiplexes will allot quite a few screens to these films. So, besides keeping track of the Kannada films that are slated for release, we also need to check on those from across the border too. I can’t possibly release my film along with a Rajinikanth or Allu Arjun movie.”

It now appears that Srinivas’ problem is at least partially solved, as his film has been picked up for distribution by Abhijit Enterprises, a group that has been involved in the business for three decades, albeit with Hindi films. “We were in talks with them for distribution and after seeing the trailer, which they found intriguing, they wanted to see the film as well. They liked it and, in turn, went one step ahead and purchased all rights from us, which includes theatrical, satellite, digital releases, dubbing and remakes as well. Old Monk is the first Kannada film that they have picked up for distribution. As a filmmaker, I am relieved because my producer is ‘safe’ with this transaction. But what this deal also means is that this group has the wherewithal to ensure the film stays in theaters long enough for word-of-mouth publicity to work,” says Srinivas, adding that he is now looking for an end of January or early February release date for the film.

Old Monk, which also stars Aditi Prabhudeva, S Narayan, Sudev Nair, Sihi Kahi Chandru, Rajesh, Aruna Balraj and Sujay Shastry, was recently cleared by the censor board with U/A certification. “The film is a fictionalized account of mythology, involving Krishna, Rukmini and Narada muni, which then pans out in modern day. The idea is simple, when Rukmini walks out on Krishna after a fight, the latter ends up cursing Narada to a life on earth, with the curse to be broken only if he manages to fall in love with someone and have her family accept him as well. But then, he is sent into a family that does not approve of love relationships. Will he be able to break his curse and return to Devaloka forms the crux of the story,” Srinivas signs off.