Date:04/04/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/04/04/stories/2006040417230200.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

TV channels running out of fresh movies to air?

Staff Reporter

Films get repeated across channels, but nobody is complaining

REPEAT PERFORMANCE: A still from `Padayappa'. Rajnikant and Kamal Hassan are perennial favourites.

CHENNAI: A group of cynics believes that movies are losing out to mega serials: especially when one has to see the same set of movies being repeated in different channels.

Channels dedicated to movies or have dedicated slots for airing movies seem to be running out of fresh movies to air. Many movies get repeated across channels. You see a Karthik or Ramarajan starrer in one channel, and in the next week or two the same movie is being aired in another channel.

But, there is an audience even for these movies. This could be a set of students taking a break from studies in the dead of the night. Some people surf channels and watch snatches of film to relax for a few minutes before falling asleep.

K. Vandhana, an auditor, helps her father in his business. "There have been times I have seen three movies a day. I watch [films] on Sundays. In the afternoon when I come home for three hours for lunch I watch movies." She has watched Kabhi Kushi Kabhi Gham 10 times and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai 15 times. "I even know the dialogues in Mouna Ragam. I have seen it 15 or 20 times."

Helps beat boredom

When Seetha Raghupathy and Samyuktha Rajappa were in college, television helped them through their projects. "We worked all night on design problems. We had to keep updating our designs and that could get boring after some time. Though you may be working with your best friend you could run out of topics to talk about," says Seetha. "It is lonely when you work all night, and TV is kind of company."

Samyuktha says, "Any movie is okay. So long as there is some noise at home. We used to work until 3.30 a.m. or 4 a.m., and it was a necessity."

Movie buffs say that barring a few, most of Kamal Haasan's and Rajinikanth's movies could be watched with the family.

But are the producers reaping profits by selling their product to television channels?

Sai Krishna, a software producer for television, says, "In India, 99 of 100 films are sold outright to TV channels. In foreign countries even old classics continue to earn royalties. Indian television channels must also pay royalty for such films."

"How can you blame television channels when the producer is more interested in recovering the money he invested? The recovery from selling films to TV channels is small. Only 5 to 10 per cent ... The focus is on releasing it in theatres that will earn a 90 per cent recovery."