'Darbar' distributors seek compensation for losses from Rajinikanth
Veteran Tamil superstar Rajinikanth's latest film Darbar, which released earlier this year, has become a rare film of the 69-year-old actor to be declared a box-office debacle. The AR Murugadoss-directorial, which has been produced by Lyca Productions, has incurred heavy losses for its distributors, who have now decided to meet Rajinikanth, thereby demanding compensation for their losses from him. Here are more details.
The distributors have reportedly lost 30% of their investment
The distributors said they first approached Lyca Productions for help, but the production house stated they couldn't assist them as they are suffering from losses as well. Reportedly, the distributors have suffered losses of about 30% of the total amount they had invested in the movie. "Distributors across various districts have suffered heavy losses," a film distributor told HT, upon the condition of anonymity.
Rajinikanth reportedly charged Rs. 108 crore for 'Darbar'
One of the major reasons cited for the commercial failure of the film is Rajinikanth's high salary, which is over 50% of the film's budget. Made on a budget of Rs. 200 crore, reportedly including Rs. 108 crore on the part of Rajinikanth's salary, the film has been declared a box-office failure, as it minted only Rs. 250 crore at the worldwide box-office.
Rajinikanth has previously refunded money to distributors
Rajinikanth has previously refunded money to distributors when his films failed to perform commercially. He had paid back distributors and exhibitors after the poor box-office performance of his films, Baba (2002) and Lingaa (2014).
'Darbar' marks first collaboration between Rajinikanth and Murugadoss
For the unversed, Darbar, which released on January 9, stars Rajinikanth in the role of an angry police officer, who is out on a mission to avenge his daughter. The movie marks the first collaboration between Rajinikanth and filmmaker Murugadoss, who has previously helmed films like Ghajini (Tamil and Hindi both) and Kaththi. Darbar also stars Nayanthara, Suniel Shetty, Prateik Babbar, and Nivetha Thomas.
Rajinikanth currently shooting for a new film by Siva
Meanwhile, Rajinikanth is currently shooting for his upcoming Tamil project with director Siva. The film, which remains yet untitled, is tipped to be a rural-based action drama. Bankrolled by Sun Pictures, the film also stars Keerthy Suresh, Khushbu and Meena, in pivotal roles. The movie marks the first collaboration between Rajinikanth and Siva, who is known for movies likeVeeram (2014) and Viswasam (2019).
