Box office's bachchas

An overwhelming and positive reaction to recent children's films have warmed the cockles of Bollywood producers' hearts, as they begin to look at a neglected genre of mass entertainment as economically viable

Nothing could play party-pooper for Chillar Party, a film devoid of stars, but welcomed nonetheless by packed cinema halls on its opening day on July 8. In its first week itself, it made an effortless Rs 5 crore at the box office. When this writer tried catching a show on the second weekend after its release, she was greeted by a housefull sign at a suburban multiplex. And those numbers can't be attributed to superstar-producer Salman Khan's Midas touch.

Delhi boy Harsh Mayar plays Chotu, an underprivileged kid in Rajasthan,
inspired by former Indian President APJ Abdul Kalam in upcoming film,
I Am Kalam. It premiered at the 63rd Cannes Film Festival in May and
was screened at film festivals worldwide, bagging various honours.
Directed by Nila Madhab Pandam, it's expected to release next month.

In these days of audience segmentation, when action films, dramas and chick-flicks are being bankrolled, children's films too are beginning to provoke immense interest. A few months ago, Amole Gupte's Stanley Ka Dabba won rave reviews, and managed a good collection at the box office. Its message about child labour was packed into a warm dabba that kids and parents relished. Children-oriented films are also prompting superstars like Hrithik Roshan, Salman Khan, Govinda and Ajay Devgn to lend their support.

But it wasn't always so. Not too long ago, releases like Kachcha Limboo, Darsheel Safary-starrer Zokkomon and Toonpur Ka Superhero turned up as duds at the box office. So what has changed?

For long, Indian children have grown up watching films targeted at an older audience. Owing to either a lack of numbers, or of stories, it was rare to find a child as the protagonist of a successful mainstream Hindi film. CEO, UTV Motion Pictures, and co-producer of Chillar Party, Siddharth Roy Kapur opines, "In our country, options for children's entertainment are few, so mass commercial entertainment tends to double as children's fare.

Bubblegum, a late July release that's been written and directed by FTII
graduate Sanjivan Lal and selected as the No 1 script by an NFDC committee,
is the story of teenagers Delzad Hiravali and Sohail Lakhani and their rites
of passage through turbulent adolescence.

Unfortunately, we haven't had many standalone films for children. The few that did get made, like Mr India, did tremendously well. But it has been a neglected genre." Popular Marathi actor Sachin Khedekar, who plays the parent of a 13-year-old in Bubblegum, selected as the number one script by a National Film Development Corporation (NDFC) committee, agrees with Roy Kapur. "Children watch either Transformers or Harry Potter.
With Hindi commercial cinema in a regressive mode, what are we offering in the name of children's entertainment?" he asks. But all that seems set to change.

A slew of releases
Slated for an August 5 release is Smile Foundations' I Am Kalam, for which New Delhi-based child actor and class 8 student Harsh Mayar won the National Film Award for Best Child Artiste 2011. The story of a poor Rajasthani boy named Chhotu, who loves reading and is inspired by former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, has been directed by Nila Madhab Panda. The film had already bagged 12 awards at festivals across the globe.
Bubblegum's taglineu00a0-- One Pretty Neighbour, One Nosy Rival In Love, Two Paranoid Parents, It's hard to be 14 -- is sure to pique the interest of teenagers when it hits theatres on July 29. Written and directed by Film and Television Institute of India graduate Sanjivan Lal, Bubblegum is a coming-of-age story of two teenagers, one of whom is hard of hearing and speech-impaired.

Another film -- a 3D animation ventureu00a0-- has voiceovers by stars Govinda, Akshaye Khanna, Boman Irani, and Urmila Matondkar. Called Delhi Safari, the film is about how five animals make a cross-country journey to meet the Prime Minister of India. Touted as one of the most expensive animation films made in the country, this Nikhil Advani production (of Kal Ho Naa Ho fame) is slated to release around Dussehra.

October will also witness the release of Main Krishna Hoon, directed by Rajiv Ruia, who made the successful animation franchise My Friend Ganesha. The USP of his latest film is, he says, actor Juhi Chawla, who will essay a full-fledged role in the film. Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif will appear in cameo roles. Gulshan Grover who, plays a chaiwala in I Am Kalam -- he was nominated for the Best Supporting Actor at the National Awards for that role -- says, "Filmmakers have identified three audience segments, the youth, family audiences and single screen audiences. But we are still figuring what will appeal to children. With Chillar Party and I Am Kalam, I'm glad filmmakers have taken notice of this untapped market."

Kids, a promising market
The last few years have witnessed a new wave of Hindi cinema, with content-driven films catering to multiplex audiences. Says Nikhil Advani, "This year, we have seen all types of cinema doing well -- Stanley Ka Dabba, Chillar Party, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Ready and Delhi Belly. All are very different. I hope Delhi Safari will be embraced with the same enthusiasm."

"Today, the child is the most important decision maker in the family; from electronics to detergents, every product is being advertised with kids as the focus," observes Manisha Singh, assistant manager, Media Relations at Smile Foundation, a social service organisation founded by corporate employees to support education and health initiatives for underprivileged children.

"The children's film market is opening up. We wanted to delve into the film medium as we could reach out to a lot more people at one go." The organisation financed I Am Kalam. Ruia agrees. "If you convince a child that your film is good, you are actually selling not one, but three film tickets. The child gets his parents along. The market for children's film is bigger than the regular market."

His belief in the potential of the children's film market is visible. "I am going to start work on My Friend Ganesha 4, and direct the second part of Tarzan -- The Wonder Car. When Tarzan released on Satellite television, it received maximum TRPs from kids. The sequel will be told from the child's perspective," he says.

Money? No problem
Still in a nascent stage, children's films are seeing producers tread carefully, which means no Harry Potteresque budgets for our films yet. Sushma Kaul Ravi, producer of Bubblegum, says, "We stuck to a tight budget of Rs 5 crore because the more you spend, the more difficult it is to bag returns. This film involves 18 teenagers, and we had to negotiate their remuneration, because we needed to make it in a viable budget."

I Am Kalam has also been made on a shoestring budget to ensure successful recovery. Singh says, "Since our budget was Rs 2.5 crore, we had to finish shooting within 56 days. We paid Harsh Mayar, our lead actor, Rs 21,000. But Smile Foundation is sponsoring the rest of his education."

As far as recovery of finances go, she remains upbeat. "We are expecting to double our investments. We are relying on word-of-mouth publicity. I don't have a Shah Rukh Khan or a Salman Khan to endorse my film, but out of the 12 awards the film has won, four have been chosen by the audience. Besides, several celebrities like Shankar Mahadevan, Jackie Shroff, Juhi Chawla and Javed Jaffery have come forward to support the film."

Star power sure adds to the film's chance of success. Salman Khan co-produced Chillar Party, while Main Krishna Hoon producers Nandan Kumar Mahto and Promila Hunter's rapport with Juhi Chawla, Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif (Hunter is Kaif's hairdresser, Mahto is Roshan's Man Friday) has made the Rs 8 crore venture bankable.

Exuding confidence, Mahto says, "It is not that risky to produce children's films. Since we had big stars in the film, we had no trouble finding financiers."u00a0 Advani, whose dream project took four years to materialise, has a contrary view. "It is not viable to make a film like Delhi Safari in India. I did it because it is a project I am passionate about for the sake of my four year-old daughter. Fortunately, I had brave partners backing me."

He hopes the film's bilingual releaseu00a0 in Hindi and English, will ensure a good recovery. "Hollywood biggies like Vanessa Williams have lent their voice for the English version. The film carries the heart of a child; all of us have the soul of a child within us, so I hope it appeals to all. Money is a bonus," says Advani.

Roy Kapur admits he is willing to invest in future children-centric projects. "We kept our production costs tight because we knew this was an experiment, and that we would have to spend on marketing the film. We spent Rs 8 crore, and that includes print and publicity costs for Chillar Party. When you shoot for a children's film, long hours aren't possible. Besides, you can only shoot at certain times of the year. To top it all, our film has a dog at the centre of the plot, so that made it more challenging to shoot."

Bachche? Baap re baap!
Working with kids come with its share of challenges. Nitesh Tiwari, co-director of Chillar Party relives his experience. "A kid will never value acting like an adult actor does. He won't care for continuity. If you have cast the wrong kid, you are in trouble."

Singh recalls how Mayar would throw a little tantrum each time a retake was demanded. Making children interact with an animated character spells even more trouble, according to Ruia. "In Main Krishna Hoon, I worked with eight children, all aged eight to 12. The children have to interact with animated characters, and I often had to act like a kid myself to extract the kind of performance I wanted."

When you cast slightly younger children, it means you have to deal with their parents too, as the Bubblegum producer discovered. "Adults are responsible. But when you are dealing with a young age group, you are also dealing with their parents, so that's an uphill task," says Ravi.

What next?
The future of mainstream children's films, and their budgets will depend on the fate of the upcoming releases. "Film business is based on validation. If I Am Kalam makes a profit on investment, there will be more films like it," says Grover.

Competing with Hollywood franchises will be tough. But Roy Kapur doesn't want to at all. "We need to tell interesting stories and strive to create original superheroes, and our own franchises," he says. "But a good story doesn't need massive budgets. Chillar Party is testimony to that."

In our country, options for children's entertainment are few, so mass commercial entertainment tends to double as children's fare. Unfortunately, we haven't had many standalone films for children. The few that did get made, like Mr India, did tremendously well. But it has been a neglected genre.
-- Siddharth roy kapur
CEO, UTV Motion Pictures, co-producer, Chillar Party

Filmmakers have identified three audience segmentsu00a0-- the youth, family audiences and single screen audiences. But we are still figuring what will appeal to children, and whether it will be successful. With Chillar Party and I Am Kalam, I'm glad filmmakers have taken notice of this untapped market.
--u00a0Gulshan Grover
plays a Rajasthani chaiwala in I Am Kalam. He was nominatedu00a0 for Best Supporting Actor at
the 58th National Awards

'Dr Kalam said I was the first person to like his hairstyle'

Thirteen year-old Harsh Mayar, a class 8 student of New Delhi's Yogi Arvind School, bagged the National Award for Best Child Artiste for I Am Kalam
u00a0
What inspired you to become an actor?
I began learning acting at the age of seven at Shri Ram Centre in Delhi. I received a lot of appreciation for the roles I enacted in plays, so decided I could be an actor. I live in Delhi and come to Mumbai for auditions.

Do you like watching children's films?
Taare Zameen Par released a year after I started acting. I was inspired by Darsheel Safary. I met him recently and we spoke about his films. He asked me when I was shifting to Mumbai. I had auditioned for Chillar Party but I was rejected. It was a blessing in disguise.

Did you prefer Taare Zameen Par to Dabangg?
I see all the films whose promos I like. Bheja Fry 2 was the last film I saw.

What was it like to receive the National Award?
I loved the experience. To get a National Award is not easy. It is thanks to the hard work of my director, and my mamaji, Sunil Kumar.