Krazzy 4

The next movie from Bollywood Krazzy 4, is certainly going the new marketing mantra, more is better. Recently Om Shanti Om did it and got success (rightfully or not is your decision) and Krazzy 4 is following the same plan. It started with the regular basic releases about the movie, how it was different and all about the main Krazzy 4 stars and the female lead in Juhi Chawla.

Next came the sweet spots like item numbers. First they got the biggest name in Bollwood - Shah Rukh Khan. Put him in a project and undoubtedly you get a lot of press and TV coverage. That happened and next they got in a mass star like Rakhi Sawant (Raanti appeal we call it), and again it got a fair share of the news bytes. And finally the Krazzy 4 producer Rakesh Roshan ropes in the currently hot Hrithik Roshan, who again being part of the family obliges.

So we have the similar stategy adopted by the Om Shanti Om team where they ensure the movie is always in the news. One story dies down, then throw in another. Smart we say, but what if the movie sucks. Om Shanti Om wasn't a classic but it worked, because of the humungous publicity and the presence of SRK. After hearing about it so much, people just had to go in and see it. And yes, because of Deepika Padukone. She was an important reason for the films success - pretty, pretty sexy, and pretty sexy smile.

Krazzy 4 has managed to do the same on a slightly smaller scale and evoked interest in the movie. My bet? Hit. It looks interesting. 4 Krazzy guys, no romance-shomance. And good actors. Suresh Menon, Arshad Warsi, Irrfan Khan, Rajpal Yadav. So it will do well. And will I rush to see Krazzy 4? Yes, of course!! My very favorite Suresh Menon. He is amazing. And funny as hell.

Under fire Jodhaa Akbar notches up Rs 38.53 cr in 4 days!!!

That will be sweet Sufi music to Ashutosh's ears, wouldn't it? After all the controversies, the unnecessary threats and the fire bombing and protests (which are adding more states to its tally), it is nice to hear of such figures for the very talented and conscientious director.

In only its first 4 days, Jodhaa Akbar has mopped up 38.53 crore from the box office (domestic and international). And there is three days of collections to be added to complete a week. It is UTV Motion Picture release. Last year Om Shanti Om grossed about Rs 42 crore for the entire week and that was a Shah Rukh Khan vehicle. A close second so far has been Akshay Kumar movie Welcome as it grossed about Rs 37 crore in the first week of its release.

Last years Aishwarya-Hrithik starrer Dhoom 2 had total box office collections of Rs 32-33 crore in the first week of its launch.

US territory
After Om Shanti Om (about Rs 6.90 crore), Jodhaa Akbar (6.40 crore) is the second highest Bollywood grosser during the first-four days of its release.

Bollywood's lucky streak continues...Welcome and Taare...both big hits

It happened years ago, when Aamir and Sunny Deol went head to head with Dil and Ghayal. The trend was generally to avoid a clash as the hits ratio was as low as it is. But surprisingly both movies went on to become big hits. Later producers went back to the old system and avoided clashes as it was assumed that it would hurt both parties.

It was only rare cases of movies that released together. Aamir and Sunny did it again with Raja Hindustani and Gadar and again they went on to be huge hits. But that isn't the rule and the latest case of two big releases is OSO and Saawariya where OSO did well and Saawariya got a luke warm response. One case I felt where both films sufefred was Don (new- Shahrukh) and Jaanemann, where Jaanemann flopped big time and Don didn't do too well. Shahrukh and camp did manage to pass it off as a hit and even a sequel is being talked of, but the truth is the movie did not do as well as SRK's movies generally do. And if you consider that the music was superb (love Shaan number and the Aaj Ki Raat) and the story was stylishly told and had a unexpected twist and yet it didn't do great business.

Thats why its amazing that Welcome and Taare Zameen Par are both big hits. In fact Welcome got of to a scorcher of a start and has reportedly earned 110 crores so far. TZP was a steady starter and now has got immense word of mouth and great reviews. It is also touted as being possibly ending up as a bigger hit than the hype monster of Shahrukh Khan, Om Shanti Om, and thats some achievement. Bollywood is lucky and may the golden touch continue.

Waiting for Sunday!!!!

The advertising schedules for movies must be longer than earlier now, because I noticed that Sunday the movie has been on air for some time now. But the movie has not been released yet. What I am trying to say is that the producers are releasing their promos and trailers and the rest of the marketing material even earlier than usual.

Of course Om Shanti Om (OSO) and Saawariya were a bit unique due to the cat fight the makers of the two movies got into. But nevertheless it is obvious the marketing cycles of movies have increased drastically and so have the budgets. That means that even though movies are a lucrative business they are forking out that little just to ensure that their movie is in the public eye.

Anyway Sunday is scheduled for Jan 25 according to the official Sunday website. So will watch it and let you guys know. I am also supposed to see Bombay to Bangkok (if I get the tickets...i love freebies), so will give you the dope on that one too. Ciao.

I like the indie films like Bheja Fry coming out, which allow newer fresher stars to shine on the big screen.