With MJ gone will his event managers survive?

The plight of the pop star's London promoters brings back nightmarish memories to the organisers of his doomed 1993 Indian tour

With MJ gone will his event managers survive?

The plight of the pop star's London promoters brings back nightmarish memories to the organisers of his doomed 1993 Indian tour

Some 7.5 lakh fans who had bought tickets for Michael Jackson's London concerts are getting their money back, but the question haunting event management companies is, 'Will it wreck the organisers?'

A cancellation of MJ's Indian tour in 1993 nearly destroyed G V Films, owned by movie director Mani Ratnam's brother G Venkateswaran. Many believe it led to the eventual ruin and suicide of the film maker.

A sure mess

"A cancelled concert by a big star is sure to result in a financial mess for the organiser and the promoter," said T Venkat Vardhan of DNA Networks, which had been instrumental in getting MJ to agree to an India tour.

As managing director of an event management company that brought international artistes to India, Venkat Vardhan had been in talks to invite the king of pop to India as part of a revival tour.

Tough time for MJ's event managers

"Like any other revival tour, the euphoria was extremely high when we announced the Michael Jackson tour.
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After all, a whole generation has grown up listening to and watching him," Vardhan told MiD DAY.

AEG Live, organiser of MJ's 50-night tour scheduled to take off in London this month, is offering full refunds to the pop star's fans.

Venkateswaran too had to refund money in 1993, and lost heavily in the process. He had produced blockbuster hits such as Dalapati around the time he organised the MJ show.

G V Films had signed a contract with MJ Mama Concerts and Pebbles Music Inc. The show cancellation hit G V Films hard, and its stock fell.

Court case

DNA Networks similarly suffered huge losses. G V Films took Michael Jackson to court, claiming Rs 3 crore as damages for breach of contract.

The case came up in the Madras High Court and Justice Raman ordered issue of notices to MJ, the two US companies that had promoted the show, and the local promoter DNA Networks.

"I don't want to talk numbers now, but let's just say it took me a long time to recover financially. However, I am glad I learnt this lesson so early in my career," Venkat Vardhan said.

No Prabhudeva

Insisting "it wasn't Michael Jackson but circumstances around him that led to the cancellation of the 1993 tour in India," he rubbished talk that the tour would have brought two dance sensations Jackson and our very own Prabhudeva together on stage.

"Oh, those are just short stories circulated by the Indian media!" he remarked.

MJ cited poor health for his inability to participate in the two shows. Since GV Films had signed a contract with the event firm, they could not get any compensation from MJ.

GV's suicide

Venkateswaran never recovered from the loss and his films started failing at the box office. He was trapped in high-interest debt.

Venkateswaran hanged himself on May 3, 2003u00a0 in Chennai. He had made 17 movies, some of them all-time hits. Kamal Hasssan's Nayakan, Rajinikanth's Dalapati, and Prabhu's Agni Nakshatram, all directed by his brother Mani Ratnam, kept the box office ringing for a long time.

DOES INSURANCE HELP?
Insurance can cover only part of the costs incurred on shows of such magnitude like MJ's Comeback Tour in London.

"I'm sure they've insured box office sales, but there are so many costs incurred when announcing and promoting an event of such magnitude. Those will not be compensated, and the promoter is sure to be in a financial mess," said Venkat Vardhan of DNA Networks, which had organised a doomed two-city MJ tour in India in 1993.

"Overseas, insurance (for events like cricket matches, music concerts) is the norm. In India, the concept has caught on just 15 years ago or so. But, after 9/11 and the new world of uncertainty we live in, insurance cover is a must. However, let me tell you, recovering money from insurance companies is not easy. It's painful, to put it mildly," he told MiD DAY.