Rani Mukerji's 'MCVN' opens with fewer screens- but why
Rani Mukerji starrer Mrs. Chatterjee Vs Norway has hit the theaters and will face steady competition from Nandita Das's Zwigato and Luv Ranjan's already-released Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar. The makers of Mukerji's film released the film on 1,045 screens— domestic (535) and overseas (510). This strategy was used by Sooraj Barjatya's Uunchai. But is it a strategy or a last resort? Let's find out!
Yash Raj Films's distribution strategy
Small-budget films are released in less number of halls and later the number of screens is increased as per word of mouth. Trade analyst Taran Adarsh pointed out this strategy on Twitter. On the other side of the coin, the Ranjan directorial is distributed by Yash Raj Films and the banner's general clause is to make sure that the hall only screens their movie.
Similar strategy was used for SRK's 'Pathaan'
YRF used the same strategy for Pathaan which enraged several small-budget filmmakers. Many acclaimed films did not get screens for getting released alongside SRK's film. In West Bengal, National Award-winning filmmaker Kaushik Ganguly's directorial Kaberi Antardhan was released starring megastar Prosenjit Chatterjee in January end. They did not get most screens and no prime-time slots were given to the movie either.