In view of Covid-19 lockdown, the makers of Jyotika's upcoming film, Ponmagal Vandhal, decided to release it directly on a popular OTT platform. Following this, many theatre owners expressed their concern over Suriya's decision to not release the film in theatres.
Now, over 30 popular producers have backed Suriya's decision to release his upcoming production venture directly on OTT. They have released a joint statement saying that the trend might help the producers of small and medium budget films to recover their investments.
Their statement read, "With the development of OTT technology, many new films started coming out worldwide directly on this platform. Post the lockdown due to corona in the country, many OTT platforms have started acquiring small and medium budget films for direct OTT premiere, which we all have to welcome wholeheartedly. We must request OTT players to acquire many small and medium budget films, which are struggling to release or stuck due to this lockdown."
Director Bharathirajaa, TG Thyagarajan, K Muralidharan, T Siva, Lyca Tamil Kumaran, S Sashikanth, G Dhananjayan, SR Prabhu, CV Kumar and other film producers also argued that the makers have all rights to sell their film to any platforms in order to recover the loss. Also, they added that Hindi, Telugu and other languages producers have already started to explore this venue, which is worth it.
"For the film industry to operate smoothly, the three key stakeholders (producers, distributors and theatre owners) must work together in unison and take decisions in the best interest of the industry. We strongly request that no individual film trade association should take any decision and announce it unilaterally, which may hurt the interest of a film producer, who is trying to protect his business. Post lockdown, all of us should meet, discuss and arrive at a feasible solution for all the issues before us, including direct OTT release of new films, for the benefit and welfare of the Tamil film industry," they said.
However, Suriya's 2D Entertainment, the producers of Ponmagal Vandhal, is yet to make an official announcement regarding the film's release.
A couple of days ago, R Panneer Selvam, the general secretary of Tamil Nadu Theatre Owners Association, condemned the actor.
He said, "Seeing the news reports of Ponmagal Vandhal's release in digital platforms shocked the Theatre and Multiples Owners Association. It pains to know that the film will not release in theatres. We have a rule that the films which are made for big screens should release in theatres first followed by a digital release. We condemn the producer who has decided to sell the streaming rights. We contacted Suriya and requested him to not release the film in OTT platforms, but it fell on deaf ears. So, we have decided to not release any film involving Suriya or his production house."
Ponmagal Vandhal is touted to be a courtroom drama, featuring K Bhagyaraj, R Parthiepan, Pratap Pothen and Pandirarajan in important roles. The film is directed by JJ Fredrick.
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