₹1500 crore and counting! Bollywood stares at big losses amid Covid-19 surge

From film releases to shoot plans – the surge in Covid-19 cases has forced Bollywood to press the pause button on multiple things, again. The entertainment industry is now staring at mounting financial losses, running in hundreds of crores.

“Every quarter, at least Rs1000 crore is being lost in terms of the box-office revenue. Typically, in a year, more than ₹4000 crore come from the box office. We are losing money every month,” says trade expert Joginder Tuteja.

“In terms of the box-office numbers, we are looking at over ₹1500 crore losses in the first quarter itself. Due to the crisis, the festive weekends of the first month of the year are lost,” says producer and trade expert Girish Johar.

Actor Shahid Kapoor’s Jersey was the first film to get delayed due to the rise in the number of Covid-19 cases in December, 2021. Since then, films like RRR, Radhe Shyam, and Prithviraj have been delayed. Outdoor schedules of many films, including Merry Christmas, Pathan, Tiger 3, Liger, and Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani, have also been affected.

Shibasish Sarkar, producer, feels business for the first quarter has gone. “Back in 2019, we used to look at business worth hundreds of crores, but those numbers also have lost relevance now. The numbers have nosedived in the last two years. So, we try to look at it from a period basis, and it is that the first quarter has gone. We have to hope that things will start rolling from April,” says Sarkar.

The restrictions in Mumbai and across most parts of India are hurting the production as well as distribution of the film business. “Most films which were currently shooting have had to cancel and postpone their schedules, resulting in cost escalation. It’s going to be a herculean task for these films to deliver in the given timelines,” rues producer Amar Butala, who is backing the film, Mission Majnu.

Director Anees Bazmee shares, “We have seen huge losses till now aur agar aise chalega, toh aur (losses) honge. It’s been happening continuously, bahut zyada bada setback hai.”

According to Jehil Thakkar, leader at media & entertainment, Deloitte India, mentions, “There’s a big loss in terms of working capital cash flows. Also, the major outdoor schedules are cancelled, and they are the high cost ones. The loss would be hundreds of crores. But nobody has an exact figure”.