Animation films: for kids or adults? With the release of Lilo And Stitch, distributors face a new challenge

Syed Firdaus Ashraf in Mumbai

A huge soft toy that looks suspiciously like a dog greets you at the entrance of the Columbia Tristar Films office at Hiranandani Gardens in Powai.

It is not Pluto, Snoopy or Scooby Doo, you discover, after quickly running a mind scan to identify the creature. Ask around, and you will find it is a new animal that goes by the name of Stitch.

After successfully, launching their film Lilo And Stitch in the US in June, Columbia released their film in India October 11. The film is about Stitch, an alien that c omes to Hawaii and meets a young girl Lilo. Though the mischievous Stitch makes life miserable for everyone around, he is very lovable. The film revolves around these two characters and spreads the message about the importance of family.

A lot hangs on Lilo And Stitch's Indian release because it overtook the Tom Cruise hit Minority Report at the US box-office.

Will Lilo And Stitch be a top earner at the box-office like The Lion King was in India? The Lion King grossed over Rs 20 million at the box-office, making it the most successful animation film in India.

Pathak, for her part, expects Lilo And Stitch to gross Rs 2 million to Rs 2.5 million.

The question, though is, will Lilo And Stitch be as successful in India as it was in the US? Will people in our country get the message of the film?

For Indians have long equated animation films to 'kid films' and 'cartoon' films. Animation films in the US have a wider appeal across age groups. "Indians have a large mind block when it comes to animation films," confirms Paresh Manjrekar, Sales & Marketing Manager, Twentieth Century Fox.

Lilo and Stitch     on Rediff Lilo And Stitch battles     Cruise     Don't Miss! Amitabh, 60: A special Salman Controversy     Recent Reviews Yeh Kya Ho Raha Hai Road Shakti Sur The Four Feathers Leela Mr and Mrs Iyer     Recent Stories Who was Kishore     Kumar? My Baba, Kishore Kumar Simply Tabu! How V C Ganesan     became Sivaji Salman: What next? AB's new perfume

"We released Titan AE, an animation film, only in Mumbai and Bangalore because in other cities, theatre owners and distributors thought 20 per cent of seats will not be occupied," he adds.

"When we released the animation film Emperor's Groove in India, we faced a peculiar problem. The film was for teens and adults, the dialogues were humourous. So kids did not like the film. And teens and adults kept away from the film because they thought it was for kids," explains Pathak.

However, Monster's Inc, released by Columbia Tristar, fared well thanks to a sound marketing strategy --- the company tied up with MacDonald's in India to promote the film. "We had road shows and hoardings all over, saying, 'Come meet the Monster'. That clicked very well," says Pathak.

Interestingly, Hindi cinema has so far steered clear from making an animation film. Pathak says it is because of the perception that animation films are more time-consuming. It takes nearly two to three years to make an animation film and budgets are high without any returns.

As for Lilo And Stitch, "we just need to release the film in India with the additional cost of marketing," states Pathak.

Manjrekar adds that one problem that animation films face is that the entertainment tax is at par with mainstream Hindi films. He says, "The government must consider give some concession to animation films. If this happens, more and more people will come to see animation films in India."