 `Mozhi,’ the Prakashraj-produced Jyothika-starrer that has opened to critical acclaim in theatres, is all set to usher in revolution in Tamil home entertainment.
 Thanks to a strategic tie-up between optical disc maker Moser Baer and theatre chain Pyramid Saimira Theatre, `Mozhi’ is set to become the Tamil film that gets the fastest launch in the home video segment. Though the date is not yet set, representatives of both firms said the discs would be out “very soon”.
Home entertainment has undergone drastic changes in recent times with Moser Baer’s price revolution for original discs — Rs.28 for VCDs and Rs.34 for DVDs. Consumer interest in original movie discs has hit a new high over the past couple of months. The only hitch, though, is the lack of information about the outlets selling the discs. Moser Baer representatives said they currently had 2,000 outlets in the state and would be adding more in coming weeks. They also plan to sell through their website from next month.
Senior representatives of Moser Baer and Pyramid Saimira signed the memorandum of understanding for their tie-up at a conference in the city on Tuesday. Through the tie-up, Moser Baer will retail its original VCDs and DVDs in theatres falling under the Pyramid Saimira Theatre network. That means audience watching movies in the over 250 theatres and multiplexes of the Pyramid Saimira Theatre network will be spending money on popcorn, soft drinks and DVDs during movie intermissions.
G. Dhananjayan, Chief Operating Officer of Moser Baer, said the company’s foray into release of Tamil home entertainment market in January had been a huge success. They had released a catalogue of 101 Tamil films, including some old hits of MGR, Sivaji, Rajni and Kamal, and were able to sell nearly 10 lakh discs in the first month. “Our best selling disc in Tamil is Rajnikant’s Baasha released over 10 years ago. It showed us that customers are happy purchasing old favourites. With `Mozhi’ we hope to set a trend where new films reach the home video format soon.”
P.S. Saminathan, Managing Director, Pyramid Saimira Theatre, said the home video segment was a supplement of the theatrical segment. “Fears that distributors will run into a loss because of home theatre are not true. In fact, we have more at stake than anybody else in South India today when it comes to theatre. But we are entering into the tie-up with Moser Baer because we believe this is the best way to combat piracy. People who want to see the movies in theatres will continue to do so. It is time we recognised home video and respected it.”
Pyramid’s chairman V. Natrajan said the tie-up would be the end for movie pirates. He noted that Hindi films are released in disc format within weeks of the release.
