Sajid Nadiadwala Secures 3 Open Weeks For Ranbir & Deepika’s Tamasha

Producer Sajid Nadiadwala could well be smiling away silently. While there are talks of the BIG clash between Bajirao Mastani and Dilwale on 18th December and makers of both films pushing for that holiday season release which is securing them a three week open run, the enterprising producer has gone ahead and blocked a three week independent run for his Tamasha and that too without any fuss.

Here is how!

The film arrives solo on next Friday (27th November) and what makes it special is the fact that it won’t have much of a competition from the past either. Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, after its two week run by then, would have basically settled the euphoria amongst the audience, and hence Tamasha would get its good share of screens across the country. It is a film which doesn’t need to have a 4000 screen release and anything over 2500 screens would be ideal for an affair which has a set audience for itself. Frankly, it doesn’t need a 15 or 20 crore Day One to aim high.

For a film which is beyond an opening weekend scorer and would primarily be aiming for sustained rush of audiences day after day, it was prudent that it has a long uninterrupted run for itself. That is now being made possible as the week later (on 3rd December) arrives Hate Story 3, which has a niche audience waiting for it. An out and out mass affair, it has an audience which is different from the yuppie crowd that is looking forward to the romantic rendezvous of Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone. Hence, there isn’t a face/off per se expected with an erotic thriller. Both have their own audience.

For a film that would primarily work on content, it is the third week which is always a bonus, and this is where Tamasha would have all its eyes on since there is no mainstream Bollywood release on 11th December. An open third week is a dream for most filmmakers and Sajid – with all his clout – could well have helped Imtiaz Ali realize this in a big way.

The stage is set, and it is the film’s content that has to make most of it now.

Joginder Tuteja tweets @tutejajoginder