A Quote by Mahesh Manjrekar

Marathi film producers conveniently blame the audience. If there are 70-odd flops in a year, there are a few that are hit because the same audience comes to the theatres. — © Mahesh Manjrekar
Marathi film producers conveniently blame the audience. If there are 70-odd flops in a year, there are a few that are hit because the same audience comes to the theatres.
Sometimes I know a film might not pull the audience to the theatres and have a great collection at the box office. But I need to do these films for creative satisfaction and give something different to the audience.
See, if I was a filmmaker and I was putting my money in a film, I would definitely want actors who can bring the audience to the theatres, otherwise what is the point of it? Because I will be spending a lot of money on the film.
In America, instead of making the audience come to the film, the idea seems to be for you to go to the audience. They come up with the demographics for the film and then the film is made and sold strictly to that audience.
The action genre is kind of designed for a young male audience. But we found on 'The Matrix' that we hit the Valhalla of movie making, which is the four quadrant audience - the young male audience, the older male audience, the young female audience and the older female audience.
There is always pressure. If you make a flop film then you are under pressure to make a hit film. If you make a hit film then you are under pressure to surpass your own standard or at least deliver another hit because the audience also has expectations.
I like the saying: "The world is as you are." And I think films are as you are. That's why, although the frames of a film are always the same - the same number, in the same sequence, with the same sounds - every screening is different. The difference is sometimes subtle but it's there. It depends on the audience. There is a circle that goes from the audience to the film and back. Each person is looking and thinking and feeling and coming up with his or her own sense of things. And it's probably different from what I fell in love with.
I love little theatres because it's very intimate, and you can have a very easy rapport with the audience. Everyone's in the same room.
I can't suddenly say that because I am acting opposite Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, and Varun Dhawan... I should get the same salary as theirs. Because I won't get the audience to the theatres as much as they will.
Priyanka Chopra has produced a Marathi film. Even John Abraham announced he wants to make a Marathi film. Suddenly everyone wants to jump on the bandwagon. Shah Rukh, Rohit Shetty also want to do a Marathi film. There is an awareness. But I hope they don't come and spoil the market by making their kind of cinema.
I'm not in the movie business anymore, and hardly any 70 year olds are. I always ask the producers: 'Are there no 70-year old vampires?' Apparently there are not - or even zombies for that matter. I guess they all get eaten.
Is it perfect? Absolutely not! But there was an audience for 'Wicked,' and our producers were smart enough to reach that audience.
I went to this club in North Carolina and saw Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings perform. Just looking at the demographics of the audience, I thought it was interesting. A few weeks later, I was at the same spot to see Talib Kweli perform. And 60-70 percent of the crowd were the same people.
The director does not have anyone to blame but himself. He or she cannot hide behind anybody. If a film is a hit, everyone gets the credit, but if it flops, only the director can be blamed.
Every audience is different, even within the same venue. You have to just make every audience your audience; you can't pre-judge an audience based on the size of the room or the type of room.
I love theatre. It's far more satisfying than film. Sometimes there's a collective sigh from the audience, or it's so quiet you can hear a pin drop. I couldn't believe how easy acting was when there's an audience; after a few previews I almost couldn't do it without one.
I do not keep a track of numbers as such, but I am definitely aware of how a film of mine is doing when it is playing in theatres. More than the numbers, it is important to know how the audience is reacting to the film.
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