A foreign locale, a Mexican heroine, dialogues in English, multiple versions, dubbing in three languages and release in several countries?the makers of recently-released Kites knew what it takes to reach out to a global audience. Not surprisingly, Kites is the first Bollywood film to open in the top 10 in the US and Canada. What?s more, American audiences got a different look at Kites on May 28, when Reliance BIG Pictures released Kites: The Remix, a shorter version edited by US director Brett Ratner. Introduced in 207 US theatres, the film raked in almost $1 million during the previous weekend.

At least one other Indian film had a bigger US opening than Kites. My Name is Khan, produced by Dharma Productions and released by Fox Searchlight, took in $1.94 million in February. It ranked 13th in a weekend line-up that included Valentine?s Day, The Wolfman and Avatar.

Released on 53 screens in the UK and 120 screens in the US, the weekend collection of 3 Idiots, when it released, was Rs 93 crore gross worldwide, while the paid previews alone garnered over Rs 9 crore gross worldwide.

Obviously, Bollywood is spreading its net and reaching foreign shores. So, if Fashion and Dev D were marketed on the IPTV platform in South Korea, Striker was released on YouTube, on the same day and date as the India theatrical release.

Manish Acharya, director of Loins of Punjab Presents, explains why we have gained respect from foreign distribution houses. ?Firstly, because they believe we can finance their movies. And secondly, we have 200 million cinegoers whom they can?t ignore. This respect allows for real creative collaboration and creating films that appeal to international audiences.? However, India has a long way to go before it gets its Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon?films which earn $100 million fully from abroad.

The foreign market

While presenting a film at home may be daunting, taking it to a foreign audience, whose tastes differ, is an undertaking in itself. Amrita Pandey, senior VP (international distribution & syndication), UTV Motion Pictures, speaks of Jodhaa Akbar: ?It had a big star cast, director, elaborate sets and was fairly easy to distribute in some foreign markets.?

Acharya differs slightly: ?Our films don?t have a compelling identity overseas. An Iranian film is anticipated by a US art house audience because it is perceived to be heartfelt and cinematic. Our films don?t have that halo effect to help them cut through the marketing clutter.?

Tanuj Garg, head of international business at Studio 18, throws more light: ?Theatrical revenues make up for most of the overall global revenue pie. The theatrical business is becoming a one-week game. Takings in the first week are crucial because piracy and the glut of content result in a sharp dip from week 2, unless word-of-mouth is exceptional.?

Lavrenti Lopes, actor and model, who has national and international work in his kitty and is awaiting the release of his next film Afghan Hound, feels that ?for most Americans, watching a formulaic Bollywood movie is like going to Disney World. It?s fun and exciting, but you only do it once a year. Offbeat films are more likely to attract attention internationally?.

Limited spend

So what does taking a film abroad encompass? For Pandey, it is exciting to produce and distribute mainstream Indian cinema abroad. ?Revenue-wise, it may not always be very big. But for me personally, it?s bigger to close a deal with a Japanese, Korean, Taiwanese or Italian market than it is to break a multi-crore deal with satellite firms here in India.?

International markets are inherently different and far more difficult to tackle, believes Garg. ?While marketing and distributing cinema abroad, one is dealing with multiple countries, cultures, mindsets and norms, making the job challenging and rigorous. Also, Bollywood is secondary and tertiary in foreign markets, making it a far more difficult sell.?

Acharya explains the revenue aspects: ?Our technical capabilities have evolved and story-telling has become more Western-friendly, but we need an Indian film that will earn $100 million completely from markets abroad.? He elucidates that it takes millions of dollars to market and distribute any film overseas. While the marketing spend for Dark Knight can be $200 million, even the initial marketing spend for independent movies is in the $2-6 million range. Namesake had a $2-million marketing budget, even when it opened in New York in just two theatres in its first weekend. ?Now, $5 million is about Rs 22 crore. We don?t spend that much here to market even a top Bollywood film. So, the only way we?re going to distribute our movies well abroad is if a foreign distributor sees something in an Indian film and decides to take it to a larger audience,? points out Acharya.

Audience tastes

A wider audience will mean more tastes. ?We have to conquer a place in foreign markets where art house and mainstream merge,? feels Acharya. ?What we send abroad is what we feel the audience there likes. Fundamentally, Indian audiences have different expectations from movies than audiences abroad. We have to find a story-telling style to bridge this divide. A Quentin Tarantino copy isn?t going to cut ice with foreign audiences. Successes like Slumdog Millionaire have focused on poverty, which is not really going to do much for our mainstream cinema abroad. I feel Indian weddings are unique. Maybe a film on that could be our Crouching Tiger,? he adds.

? There exists a pronounced lack of understanding of international markets in the minds of industry folk, who believe that the marketing and distribution rules and timelines of India are applicable abroad,? Garg states pointedly, adding, ?There is not enough focussed talent participation in a film?s overseas promotion. With the exception of the new and young brigade of film makers and screen talent, who concentrate keenly on NRI markets and understand the importance of building a brand herein, the old school of actors and producers has a long way to go.?

Lopes reminds us of the length factor. ?Movies that are lengthy, which Indian films generally are, translate to lesser screenings and hence lesser profits. Assuming two movies are of the same calibre and you can screen the first one six times a day and the other four times as day, you?re bound to make more profit with the one you can screen six times a day.?

Not all the films produced and released in India make it to cinemas abroad, as the costs (in pounds sterling and dollars) involved are prohibitive, making such films a commercially unviable proposition, says Garg. ?Recently, we released Striker on Youtube abroad and it reached out to a larger overseas audience in a cost-effective manner,? he adds.

Changing times

One cannot avoid the growing power of and revenue generated by the Internet, video on demand, smartphones, iTunes, etc. Social media like Twitter and Facebook are powerful media in filling up seats. Today, reviews that count are tweets and Facebook statuses.

Platforms have changed, feels Pandey. ?We marketed Fashion and Dev D on the IPTV platform in South Korea. Whoever would have thought that possible a few years ago??

Lopes believes that the next decade will lean towards user convenience based on technological evolution, while Pandey hopes that people will pay for content across platforms. ?Today, we release our films in 45 countries. In future, I wish we release in a 100 countries. Also, due to Chinese regulations, only a certain number of foreign films release in China and Indian films never make it there. A breakthrough would be to see our films in China.?

With inputs from Bloomberg