‘Cinema is language agnostic’

Font Size

Print

Feedback

Email

Discuss

Tired of daily soaps and reality shows? Get ready for a real-time quality movie blast as UTV’s latest venture, World Movies, gears up to launch a TV channel for international cinema. With a large library of world movies available under one roof, the channel trots the globe to bring the best of international films to the discerning Indian viewer. Shantonu Aditya, chief executive officer, UTV Entertainment Television, unravels his plans for the soon-to-be launched channel and tells FE’s Sagorika Dasgupta why there’s the need to present a ‘16th genre’ in a cluttered television space. Excerpts:

What is the growth potential for a channel like World Movies?

Currently, Indian viewers are only exposed to either Indian films or films from Hollywood. There are many countries offering wonderful cinema with no opportunity for Indian viewers to sample these films. The potential for this untapped section is huge as cinema is language agnostic and there is also a great demand for foreign films in our country. Through World Movies we are planning to capture 30% of this market within a year. We are eyeing viewers across the SEC-A metros between 18 and 35 years.

Will it be a pay channel and when is the channel being launched?

Yes, World Movies will be a pay channel. It will be priced at Rs10 per consumer per month and we will be launching the channel this month.

How is World Movies different from UTV’s other venture Bindass Movies?

Bindass Movies showcases English action and comedy films that are dubbed in colloquial Hindi, whereas World Movies has a collection of foreign films from various genres subtitled in English.

Tell us about the content and programming of World Movies.

According to our research, most Indian viewers like to watch movies a little late in the night. So we have positioned the prime time for our channel around 11 pm accordingly, with major movie slots at 5pm, 8pm and 11pm. Another key area that we are focusing on will be the weekend slot as that time is best suited for family viewing. Apart from films we will also showcase information on film festivals occurring across the world. We will soon release some of these international films in theatres for the first time in India after which these movies will be displayed on the channel.

Have you tied up with some of the multiplexes for the release of these films?

We’ve made tie-ups but I cannot comment on the deal, as it is a little premature to talk about it.

How many titles have you acquired and what genres will you be focusing on?

We have acquired a large library of world movies with 450 titles from countries like South Korea, Japan, South Africa, Mexico, Italy, France and Spain. We did not want to neglect English films as they have significant appeal and around 20% of our films will be in English. We have an eclectic mix of almost all genres ranging from drama to suspense and thrillers, with the choicest of family films, Japanese horror films and the best of Asian action movies. Our main focus was on obtaining the best of contemporary and commercially successful films.

Palador Pictures had tied up with UTV for the world cinema venture under the Olive brandname. Did you lose out on many significant titles after the spilt?

No, that happened long ago and Palador Pictures had a library of old movies. Like I mentioned, our motive is to present viewers with international contemporary films that are box office hits and are not less than five years old.

So won’t you be losing out on the segment of viewers who prefer classics?

The demand for new and current movies is much higher as compared to that of classics. People prefer watching good, contemporary cinema on television whereas classics are more like a collector’s item. Recently there was a Satyajit Ray film festival on television, I don’t think it garnered great TRPs. Nobody really has the time to sit through an old film, which is aired on television, people like to purchase DVDs and home videos of old movies and like to watch it at leisure and as per their convenience.

Could you give a perspective on the demand for international cinema in India?