Kismat Konnection, starring actors Shahid Kapur and Vidya Balan, which was released on Friday worldwide, is not being shown in any of exhibitor PVR Cinemas’ 95 screens across India. Industry sources claim that UTV, which is the distributor of the film, has asked PVR for 50% of the first week’s collection and 40% and 30% of the subsequent weeks revenues as its share. It also asked for a certain number of shows on PVR. Since the latter was unable to accept both the clauses, PVR pulled back and has not released the film in its screens. Analysts estimate that this could even lead to a loss of Rs 2-3 crore per week for PVR.
Sidhdharth Roy Kapoor, CEO, UTV Motion Pictures, confirmed the news but declined to share the details. The official spokesperson of PVR said, “We are currently at the negotiation stages and therefore won’t be able to comment on it.”
A senior film analyst who didn’t want to be quoted said, “Due to such misunderstandings, the film suffers more than anything else.” He also said that only in the Bombay circle, a good film generates business of anything between Rs 4-7 crore in the first week and so the amount increases manifold pan India. Both PVR and UTV being a prominent players in the business, will lose out on a huge amount of money.
Taran Adarsh, a film analyst and critic, said, “Kismat Konnection is a pleasant experience, a sunshine cinema that lingers in your memory even after the show has concluded.” Devang Sampat, senior vice-president, Cinemax, another exhibitor, said, “The film is up and running and so far the response is quite positive.”
Recently, PVR got a top gear expansion mode and raised Rs 120 crore from JP Morgan Chase and ICICI Venture in lieu of a 40% stake in PVR Pictures, a subsidiary of PVR Cinemas. The company is set to expand its film exhibition, production and distribution business. The company plans to launch an additional 250 screens by 2010. The company is also planning to come up with several PVR Talkies in tier two and three cities although they have not zeroed in on the cities yet.