BANGALORE: “I debuted in film distribution business with D N Gupta on May 4, 1955. He advised me to focus on Kannada films when the reorganisation of states took place in 1956. He said that there will be potential for distribution of Kannada films. I started Vijaya Pictures on May 7, 1958 to distribute Kannada films. B Nagi Reddy was the managing partner of Vijaya Pictures.
Those were the days when distributors financed a major portion of the budget. The producer collected the remaining amount from Hyderabad-Karnataka and Bombay-Karnataka regions. The distributors were involved in the decision-making process of a film including the decision of casting. It was convenient for a producer to get back his money if his film failed at the box office. Distributors never demanded the producer to pay interest on the amount paid to him as advance since they were capable of generating funds from friends and relatives. The distributors used to get commission for the service rendered in film production. The success rate of Kannada films was 40 to 60 per cent. Now, it has come down to 8 and 9 per cent.
It all happened when Dwarakeesh, producer of Mayor Muthanna, opted for outright sale of his film due to reasons best known to him. It enabled him to get money at the time of the release. With the success of that film, many producers preferred outright sale method. However, it became a major disaster since producers started increasing the distribution rights without knowing the potential of their films. Many producers do not even know the basic nuances of the film industry. Seeing an advantage, artistes hiked remuneration thereby escalating the cost.
There is no option except involving all stake holders in film making for a better future.