Mani Ratnam’s eagerly awaited Raavanan in Tamil will not be releasing in any multiplex screens in Bangalore! In Bangalore city the film will only be screened in seven single screens!
Reliance Big Pictures, who are marketing the film have been told by Karnataka Film Chamber (KFC), that they can treat Raavan and Raavanan as one film, and not two. Suhasini Mani Ratnam, one of the producers of the film had even provided proof that both the Hindi and Tamil versions are two negatives, but KFC remains adamant.
The KFC is very clear that only Kannada films can release in any number of screens and Other Language Films (OLF) can only release in a maximum of 24 screens. So in case of Raavan, Raavanan and Villain will have to be screened in 24 screens in the state. Since Bollywood is bigger in Karnataka, Raavan will release in 16 screens in Bangalore multiplexes (ticket prices are higher, so more revenue), while Raavanan will play in 7 single screens and Villain in one single screen.
It is bad news for Raavanan and Tamil fans of Mani Ratnam and Vikram, as the film cannot be screened at the multiplexes, which forms the bulk of their viewership.
Meanwhile the official count is that 550 screens worldwide will be screening the Tamil Raavanan, with nearly 300 of them in Tamil Nadu. The film just looking at the number of screens is sure to take a very big opening.
