Aamir Khan’s release strategy for Sitaare Zameen Par (SZP) has kicked up a storm in the exhibition sector.
Single screen owners and Akshay Kumar fans are saying that Aamir’s team was pressurising theatres to give majority or all shows to SZP and not even a single show to Housefull 5 even when it was doing better business.
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This led to high profile standoffs, one of which was at Jaipur’s Raj Mandir where the management wanted a balanced schedule between the two films.
But Aamir’s team wanted all four shows for SZP or nothing and the theatre had to drop SZP and run only Housefull 5.
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Similar complaints came from hundreds of single screen cinemas all over the country who said they were denied SZP at the last minute when they refused to give in to these demands.
Multiplexes and some industry voices are hailing Aamir’s decision to go for exclusive theatrical release and not OTT as a “bold move” for cinemas but the exclusion of single screens and show dominance has left smaller exhibitors feeling betrayed.
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Fans of mass market entertainers like Housefull 5 are also upset over what they see as unfair tactics.
Critics are saying that this “all or nothing” approach is not about supporting cinema but about capturing market share and squeezing out competition even when audience doesn’t justify it.
In the end Aamir’s strategy may get him headlines and multiplex screens but it may alienate the single screen backbone of Indian cinema and fuel accusations of sabotage rather than fair play.
