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One is the biggest film of this year. The other is, arguably, the biggest Bollywood film ever. Petty criminals Jai and Veeru have been picked to take on not dreaded dacoit Gabbar but national hero Mangal Pandey, as the sepoy embarks on a fierce box-office invasion.
It?s Ramesh Sippy?s 30-year-old Sholay vs Ketan Mehta?s Rs 40-crore Mangal Pandey ? The Rising this Friday. But past heroics are no match for present-day hype.
The advance bookings for the Amitabh Bachchan-Dharmendra-Amjad Khan-starrer have been lukewarm so far. ?Unfortunately, there?s very little interest in the film till now, but I am sure the current bookings of Sholay are going to pick up, with the tickets priced much lower than Mangal Pandey,? says Subhasish Ganguly, general manager of INOX (City Centre).
Despite weekend ticket price vaulting the Rs 200-mark and eight shows a day crammed into multiplexes, Mangal Pandey bookings have crossed 90 per cent for the first four days. Single-screen theatres, too, have recorded ?maximum advances?.
But the Sholay re-release at least means that one heavyweight film is in the ring with the Aamir Khan comeback extravaganza, all new releases having thrown in the towel. The Mohit Ahlawat debut vehicle James, deliberately promoted by producer Ram Gopal Varma as ?The rising of a new hero?, has been pushed back by a week to August 19. Other big releases, like No Entry and Chocolate, have decided to wait till September for the Rising storm to pass.
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| A child mimics Aamir Khan in a poster from Mangal Pandey — The Rising. Picture by Pradip Sanyal |
?Apart from the very high levels of awareness around Mangal Pandey due to extended marketing and promotion, there have been a lot of bulk bookings by banks. A period piece like this is ideal for value-additions to their patrons,? feels Ganguly of INOX.
Apart from filling up theatres, Mangal Pandey?s storming of the city screens has opened up new distribution strategies, with 70-odd of the 800-plus prints worldwide coming to the eastern region.
?There are several firsts for Calcutta, thanks to the size of the movie,? says Pritam Jalan, the distributor of the film in east India. ?For the first time, there is a screening of the same film every hour at the multiplexes. What?s more, also for the first time, we have sent two prints to the same multiplex ? INOX (Forum) ? so that they don?t get damaged with the repeated showings.?
So, will Gabbar?s gruff voice be drowned in Mangal?s war cry? ?They are two very different kinds of films and compared to Mangal Pandey, Sholay has a restricted number of shows,? says Arijit Dutta, owner of Priya, which is screening the 1975 blockbuster along with Jyoti, Navina, INOX and 89 Cinemas.
Trade pundits feel the success of Mughal-e-Azam has given another golden oldie a fresh lease of life at the turnstiles. ?That an old film can have a dream run with fresh prints and a re-recorded soundtrack has opened up the prospects of many a blockbuster from the past. Sholay, too, should make a mark with the new Dolby digital audio output,? says a Mumbai-based trade analyst.
But with all eyes on the revolt, is anyone lending an ear to Basanti?s prattle in Ramgarh?