Rental Vs Percentage Fight Heats Up In Tollywood Before Peddi Release
The Telugu film industry is seeing a big fight between theatre owners and producers over how money is shared. This debate grew louder before Ram Charan’s Peddi release on June 4. Right now, most single screens in Telugu states use a fixed rental system. Theatre owners get paid a set amount to play a film. If the crowd is gettong lesser they will be paid in percentage instead of rent. Owners say this model is hard now because fewer people come to theatres. Over 100 single screens in Telangana shut down in the last three years. They want to completely move to a percentage system where earnings are split based on ticket sales.
In the rental system, producers get money up front and take less risk. Theatre owners carry all the risk if the film fails. The fee depends on the theatre size, city, and the star power of the film. The good part for owners is they keep all extra money if a film becomes a big hit. The bad part is they lose money when films flop. They still pay staff, power bills, and rent. Many owners say fixed rent plus high costs makes it tough to upgrade screens and sound. Multiplexes already use percentage sharing across India, so single screens feel they are at a loss.
The percentage system shares box office money. A common split is 55 to 60 percent to producers in week one and 40 to 45 percent to theatres. From week two, the share is often 50-50. This cuts risk for theatre owners during slow weeks. If a film does poorly, owners lose less money. Producers say the problem is timing. Many films like Peddi are already made with the old model in mind. Budgets are fixed based on expected rental deals. Sudden change can hurt films ready for release. They also want talks on theatre quality, upkeep, and online booking fees if the share model comes in.
Both systems have pros and cons. Rental gives quick, sure money to producers in the early days of a film and can help small films get screens. But it can kill single screens when footfalls drop and shifts to percentage system. Complete Percentage system helps theatres survive bad weeks and pushes both sides to work for better films. But producers may earn less on big hits in week one. The real issue is fewer people visiting theatres after Sankranti. Short OTT gaps, IPL matches, and weak stories add to the drop. A team of producers and theatre owners will now meet to find a middle path. Trade experts feel a short term fix will come before Peddi releases. Long term, the industry must bring back the theatre habit and balance risk for both sides.
