'Baby John' team seeks 50-50 screen split with 'Pushpa 2'
What's the story
Murad Khetani, the producer of the upcoming film Baby John, has responded to recent reports of a show-sharing dispute with the distributor of Pushpa 2: The Rule.
In an interview with Bollywood Hungama, Khetani clarified that his team is looking for a "reasonable" 50-50 allocation in single screens.
This comes amid rumors that Baby John's distributor PVR Inox Pictures had asked for a 60% share.
Booking update
Khetani assured advanced booking for 'Baby John' will commence soon
Khetani also addressed concerns over the delayed advanced booking for Baby John, starring Varun Dhawan. He assured that bookings would start across India on Monday (December 23).
"There's no issue. MovieMax, Miraj, Mukta, etc. have also opened advances," he said.
"There were some little things that needed to be taken care of, regarding programming. We need to go step-by-step and it takes time. Our distribution team has been working on it. Everything can't be closed and arranged together."
Strategy explanation
Khetani clarified PVR Inox's early booking strategy
Further, Khetani clarified the early booking strategy of PVR Inox for both Baby John and Pushpa 2.
He explained that other multiplexes follow the programming pattern of national chains like PVR, Inox, and Cinepolis.
"That's why PVR, Inox, and Cinepolis opened first. PVR Inox is distributing the film. Other chains wanted to see what PVR Inox is asking for and are also implementing similar showcasing in their own theatres."
Show-sharing details
Khetani shared details on single-screen show-sharing
When asked about the show-sharing arrangement in single screens, Khetani said, "We are working on it as we need to take a lot of factors into consideration, including the film's run time."
"Some single screens are okay with show-sharing while some are not. By Monday (December 23), it'll be sorted. We are being very reasonable. We are asking for 50-50 show sharing."
Release plans
'Baby John' to release on approximately 3,000 screens
Finally, Khetani revealed Baby John is slated to release on some 3,000 screens on Wednesday (December 25).
However, he confirmed that there are no plans for a paid preview of the film from the evening of Tuesday (December 24).
Helmed by Kalees, it serves as a remake of Atlee's 2016 Tamil film Theri. The film stars Dhawan in the titular role, alongside Keerthy Suresh (in her first Hindi film), Wamiqa Gabbi, Zara Zyanna, and Jackie Shroff.