Despite investing ₹3000 crore on 241 films, Tamil film producers lost ₹1000 crore in 2024, making it a disastrous year.
2024 was actually one of the most disappointing years for the Tamil film industry, despite the fact that the industry enjoyed the success of a number of films, including Amaran, Maharaja, and Garudan. It has been reported that Tamil cinema producers spent around ₹3000 crore on filmmaking in 2024, but in the end, producers and distributors lost about ₹1000 crore. Only roughly 18 of the 241 movies that were released last year did well at the box office, suggesting that 223 of them were a failure.Kollywood is now expecting that 2025 would be a better year, and while some are concentrating on money, others are aiming to rebalance content. However, what caused producers to suffer such a massive loss in 2024? Was the year difficult for filmmakers because of the subject, the caliber of the films, or the weariness of the audience?Dominoes fall
The fact that several high-budget films, starring Suriya, Kamala Haasan, and Rajiniaknth, among others, unexpectedly failed at the box office is one of the main reasons why producers say they lost ₹1000 crore. Consider Suriya's highly anticipated pan-Indian film Kanguva. reportedly produced with a ₹350 crore budget,The producer, KE Gnanavel Raja, was certain that the film would earn at least ₹1000 crore at the box office upon its release, therefore it was heavily advertised throughout India. Sadly, it didn't work out, and Kanguva only made an astounding 106 crore. Despite reportedly having a ₹250 crore budget, director Shankar's Indian 2 only grossed about ₹150 crore at the box office. Kollywood was rocked by the audience's rejection of these films as well as other blockbusters like Rajinikanth's Vettaiyan.
"Tamil cinema had high expectations for big budget films like Indian 2, Kanguva, and Vettaiyan, but none of them worked with the audience," explained BOFTA G Dhananjeyan, producer and distributor.The only movie that did well at the box office was Thalapathy Vijay's The Greatest of All Time (GOAT). As a result, 2024 had less hits than 2023, when Tamil cinema had a number of hits (such as Jailer, Leo, Ponniyin Selvan 2, Varisu, Thunivu, etc.). The GOAT, Amaran, Raayan, Aranmani 4, Maharaja, and nine more films did mediocrely well, but those were the only top performers. The success ratio has dropped to 7%, with only 18 out of 241 films becoming successful, while the rest 93% were major flops. In actuality, the digital print and publicity costs for around 150 films were not even covered.
The heavy weaponry are nowhere to be found.
However, 70% of all films produced annually in the film business frequently do not do well at the box office. Instead of being the exception, it is the rule. Nevertheless, when high-budget pictures perform exceptionally well at the box office, the loss-profit ratio is balanced, lowering the losses suffered by producers and distributors. "If 200 films are produced in a year, at least 30 to 40 will be successful at different levels, such as blockbuster, super hit, hit, or break even," said trade expert Ramesh Bala. Thus, I don't find it shocking that a lot of films didn't succeed in 2024. However, last year's top films also didn't do as well as Jailer, including Kanguva, Indian 2, and even Vettaiyan.A movie is rejected by the audience because of its bad screenplay, content, etc. Additionally, there are a number of other elements that are related to the film's subject matter. There is a cycle: occasionally content-focused little films click, and other times large films click.
Small and medium-budget films in Tamil cinema also find a lot of success each year, but in 2024, there weren't many hits in that category either. "Even small and medium budget films saw only a handful of hits last year," Dhananjeyan continued. At the box office, movies like Vaazhai, Lubber Pandhu, DeMonte Colony 2, and Garudan performed well. The Tamil public is wanting better screenplays with better stories and performances instead of becoming star-struck and addicted to expensive productions.
And in January 2025, this was demonstrated once more. Game Changer, a pan-Indian film directed by Shankar and starring Ram Charan, was released. The Tamil version of the movie made about ₹10 crore at the box office, and the film industry deemed it a flop. Madha Gaja Raja and Kudumbasthan, two much lesser Tamil films, have become huge hits this month, earning over ₹70 crore and ₹10 crore, respectively. As a result, the Tamil audience still prioritizes good tales.
Ajith Kumar's Vidaamuyarchi and Good Bad Ugly, Rajinikanth's Coolie, Kamal Haasan's Thug Life, Suriya's Retro, and a potential Sivakarthikeyan film are among the major Tamil films that are scheduled for release in 2025.Dhananjeyan and other Tamil film producers and distributors are quite hopeful despite the outcome of 2024. "In general, 2024 was a difficult year for Tamil cinema, but the industry anticipates a stronger hit ratio and more successful films in 2025," he stated.
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