Hyderabad: A renewed sense of jubilation is sweeping through Telugu cinema. In just two months, six Telugu films have set cash registers on fire at the box office. Declared hits by current industry standards, these successes have marked a rare phase in which one successful theatrical release has followed another.And this mood has not been confined to Telugu cinema alone, with Hollywood releases such as *The Odyssey* and *Spider-Man* also drawing good collections.More than just a string of hitsWhat makes this phase noteworthy is not merely the number of films that have worked at the box office, but the fact that they have sustained theatrical interest beyond their opening weeks. At a time when audiences have become used to watching films on the web and OTT platforms, keeping footfalls going beyond opening weeks has become an increasingly uphill task for the film industry.“Six films being declared hits within just two months is a very encouraging development. What makes it significant is that these are not isolated successes. One film has been followed by another, giving theatres sustained business and creating a sense of celebration in the industry,” said Mohan V, joint secretary of the Telugu Film Chamber of Commerce. He said this could perhaps be the first time after Covid-19 that any film industry in the country has tasted this kind of a sustained run of success.“For some time, theatrical business was under pressure as audiences had more options to watch films outside theatres. But this run has given exhibitors, distributors and filmmakers a reason to be optimistic. It also shows that the theatrical experience continues to have its own value when a film connects with its audience,” he said.Six films, six directorsThe sequence of success began with Nandini Reddy’s `Maa Inti Bangaaram’ and continued with Murali Kishor Abburu’s `Lenin’, Ravi Namburi’s `Chennai Love Story’, Merlapaka Gandhi’s `Korean Kanakaraju’, Venky Atluri’s `Vishwanath and Sons’ and Siva Nirvana’s `Irumudi’.The variety of filmmakers and subjects has added to the sense that this is not a run driven by one star, one production house or banner or one familiar formula. Instead, different voices appear to have found space at the box office, suggesting that audiences are responding to content across tones and genres.From 100 days to four weeksFor an industry once accustomed to celebrating 50-day and 100-day runs, such milestones now belong to another era. Over time, shorter theatrical runs and lower occupancy patterns became common, with even a two-week run coming to be regarded as a good theatrical performance.Filmmaker Madhura Sridhar, whose `Duet’ with Anand Devarakonda is expected to release by the end of the year, said the present run needs to be viewed against that changing benchmark.“Earlier, films used to celebrate 50-day and 100-day runs, with theatres running to full capacity. Over time, both the number of days and occupancy declined sharply, particularly after Covid-19. Slowly, even a two-week run came to be considered a good run. In that context, the fact that most of these films have managed four-week runs with encouraging occupancy is like a celebration,” he said.Going beyond run-of-the-mill formulasTelugu cinema has already built a strong national identity and fan following through blockbusters such as the `Baahubali’ and `Pushpa’ series. The recent run, however, has included films that experimented with characters, subjects and tones outside the familiar mainstream template.S Ramakrishna, a film enthusiast and sociopolitical analyst who watched all six films, said several of them moved away from the comfort zone of conventional Telugu cinema.“Some of these films have one thing in common. They have stepped out of the comfort zone of the typical Telugu film formula, which is often built around a big star or a big director,” he said.He pointed to `Maa Inti Bangaaram’, starring Samantha and directed by Nandini Reddy, as a simple family story with its own special elements. `Lenin’, he said, showed Akhil Akkineni in a new light, while `Chennai Love Story’ did not hesitate to portray a female protagonist who turns to alcohol for a period of time to cope with grief.“`Korean Kanakaraju’ is a completely unusual comedy cocktail. `Vishwanath and Sons’ touched on the sensitive subject of surrogacy as an option for a man who marries late in life. `Irumudi’ intelligently touched upon Telugu people’s connection with Lord Ayyappa while giving it a social touch too. There is a very strong movie-loving culture in both the Telugu states, and it has come back through good content-based stories,” he said.OTT changed audience tastesKuchipudi Venkat, who directed two Telugu films before turning entrepreneur, was encouraged enough by the successive successes to post about the trend on social media. “Definitely, production houses, writers and filmmakers are taking note of evolving audience tastes. Different content on OTT has influenced viewers, and different stories written in Malayalam have also been a source of inspiration,” he said.He added that audiences may also be looking to move away from the solitary experience of watching films on mobile phones and television screens. “One thing is clear: it has ended the lean run for some stars. If the content is good, people, including fans, do not mind watching (in theatres),” he said.According to him, post-Covid audience expectations from a cinema outing have changed as viewers now have more choices, greater access to films across languages and the convenience of waiting for a release to reach their screens at home. “A theatrical ticket therefore has to offer something that feels worth their time, money and effort,” he added.Can the momentum last?That is where the current theatrical run becomes significant. It is not simply about audiences choosing theatres over OTT for a few weekends, but about filmmakers responding to an audience that has more choices than ever before.For now, six successful films arriving in quick succession have shown that theatrical viewing still wields considerable pull. But whether this momentum continues will depend on what filmmakers offer next as audiences have made their choice crystal clear: if filmmakers offer them something that feels worth watching, viewers are willing to leave the comfort of their screens at home and queue up outside cine theatres.
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