With the advent of streaming platforms and their rise, a lot of changes have taken place in cinema all over the world, including Bollywood. Apart from TV shows and movies, viewers now have a chance of watching innumerable web series on these platforms, along with thousands of films anytime, any place. Several smaller films are now releasing directly on these websites and apps to save on the cost of exhibiton. A few films in fact are intended to arrive straight on OTT without making the journey to cinemas.
A few weeks back, it came to light that the long-delayed film, Drive, starring Sushant Singh Rajput and Jacqueline Fernandez, and produced by Karan Johar, would be releasing directly on Netflix. And now another film that is all set to follow suit is Lootcase. Starring Kunal Kemmu, Rasika Dugal, Gajraj Rao, Vijay Raaz and Ranvir Shorey, this comic caper is backed by Fox Star Studios and directed by Rajesh Krishnan, known for making the popular web series The Tripling. Incidentally, the film was scheduled to release on October 11.
A source close to the project says, “The makers had a meeting on Saturday and decided to not go ahead with the theatrical release of Lootcase. They are confident of the product but they are aware that the buzz is very low. Moreover, the star cast, though appealing, is not big enough to pull audiences to cinemas. Not to forget, there’s too much competition in the form of War, Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy and Joker releasing this week on October 2 and The Sky Is Pink releasing on October 11, the day Lootcase was scheduled to arrive. It’s also pre-Diwali period, when people are busy with shopping and other activities and turnout anyway is low. All these factors would have affected the collections of Lootcase, even if it gets positive word of mouth.”
The source further continues, “Fox Star Studios recently burnt their hands with the Sonam Kapoor-Dulquer Salmaan starrer The Zoya Factor. It didn’t even collect Rs. 3 crores in India. As a result, they are over cautious with Lootcase and don’t want to have back-to-back commercial disasters in their filmography. Hence, when they got a lucrative offer from a streaming platform, they went ahead and cancelled the theatrical release.”
The source, before signing off, states, “Everyone is not happy with the decision as they were looking forward to the theatrical release of Lootcase. But this is business and practicality will overrule emotions at the end of the day.”
