Will Salman Khan start a new trend with Radhe's hybrid release?

As Salman Khan's Radhe becomes India's first big-ticket hybrid release, with pay-per-view offering priced at Rs 249, trade circle divided over the move.

The constants of the equation remain unchanged — Salman Khan, the occasion of Eid and a big-budget film. The variable — a pay-per-view model instead of the big-screen. Will the formula work? That’s the question on the minds of stakeholders in the film industry after Khan announced that Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai will have a hybrid release, in theatres and on ZeePlex. Trade rumours suggest that the pay-per-view outing will be priced at Rs 249.  

Exhibitor Vishek Chauhan believes the decision is far from wise, given the current situation and the platform’s limited reach. “The pay-per-view model is strong in the UK and US; it didn’t work in China. It seems that Zee has invested considerably in Radhe, and hence, jumped the gun in panic. It would’ve been a better idea to release it on ZEE5 that has steady Hindi-belt viewership than on ZeePlex. It would have helped the platform penetrate deeper into the country. The subscription model is tried-and-tested here. When they tried the pay-per-view model with Khaali Peeli [2020], the result was abysmal. They made R70 lakh after which they stopped revealing numbers,” he says. Chauhan warns of the actioner falling prey to piracy.

Trade analyst Akshaye Rathi is optimistic, believing that Khan’s stardom may set a new trend. “A film like this, featuring India’s biggest star, is the best product for testing this model. There is a risk of piracy, but the frenzy for his movies is so high that fan clubs will pay to watch Radhe,” he states.

Though he feels that the actor’s films deserve a big-screen outing, trade analyst Taran Adarsh agrees that a simultaneous OTT release may be prudent, since theatres across many states are shut. “Radhe was supposed to release in Eid 2020, so the economics must have gone haywire.” He adds that it’ll be nearly impossible to gauge the success of the Disha Patani-starrer. “In the past, there have been reports of some films doing extraordinary business on OTT. When I checked with the [corresponding] OTT platforms, I was told they don’t reveal numbers.”

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