UTV ties up with Ramesh Sippy Films

UTV has struck a deal with Ramesh Sippy Films and Entertainment One for worldwide distribution rights for three of their forthcoming films.

The films, Bluffmaster, Taxi No9211 and Rooh, co produced by Ramesh Sippy Films and Entertainment One are slated for release in the next five months.

Ronnie Screwvala, chairman, UTV said, "This has to be seen in a broader context where different companies with respective strengths are coming together to create value."

Screwvalla added that this kind of synergy was the first of its kind and will open up the market for many more such synergies. The total budget for the three movies, which are financed by Entertainment One is about Rs 25 crore (Rs 250 million).

Ramesh Sippy Films have adopted the studio model wherein parallel projects will be undertaken which will be packaged together for both distribution and co-production deals.

According to industry sources, the UTV distribution deal for the three movies has garnered Rs 17-21 crore (Rs 170 to 210 million).

Screwvalla, throwing light on the distribution deal, stated that bundling three movies together for international distribution in advance ensures enough time for pre-planning, marketing and positioning activities.

Talking about the scope of Indian cinema overseas, he said that the demand for Bollywood was on the rise.

The per screen average was going up in most markets for Indian flicks. Key markets where Indian cinema is doing well is Australia, South Africa, United Kingdom and the United States.

Although one of the biggest challenges that the film industry is currently posed with is how to grow the market.

More people are definitely watching films now than in the past. And this is due to different avenues for watching movies, be it theatres, DVD, television or new media technology.