Hollywood, which destroyed film industries in many countries of the world failed to make a dent in the primacy of Hindi and other local language film industries in India. But things are changing now. To Bollywood’s discomfort, and to Hollywood’s glee, the global giant is slowly spreading its tentacles over the Indian box office, and the thumping success of Jurassic World, Avengers: Age of Ultron and Fast & Furious 7 this year, just prove the fact.
Now in a major move, Star Wars: The Force Awakens which is set for a Christmas release has already started its promotional activities. This is an unprecedented shift because Hollywood films, more or less, started promotions merely a month before their release in India. Moreover, the film will be pitted against highly anticipated Hindi films like Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Bajirao Mastani, and Rohit Shetty’s Dilwale which boasts of big directors and A-list stars. Since Lucasfilm has already started the promotional drive, it shows the growing confidence on their part.
Star Wars is one of the most popular global franchises in cinema, and the new chapter, Star Wars: The Force Awakens is coming almost after a decade since their last release. Though the expectation is sky high globally, the studio is apprehensive of whether the larger Indian mass is familiar with the space opera universe. Hence, to increase the awareness for the uninitiated, and heighten expectations among its followers, the studio has rolled out a strong marketing plan. Treating it like a big ticket Bollywood film, they have installed special Star Wars experiential zones at multiplexes across the country. In cities like Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore, movie going audiences can pose with the famed light-sabers across special Star Wars zones.
Adding fuel to the fire, the promotional blitz has been extended to major college festivals like Umang (14th -17th August) and Malhar (15th - 17th August) in Mumbai. Since the release of the trailer last year, they have also made their presence felt at the Comic Con, India.
“Last December, we set new benchmarks at the box office with PK, and this year, we hope to do the same with our Christmas release,” says Amrita Pandey, VP, Disney India and adds, “As is evident with the unprecedented share of the Hollywood pie in 2015, Star Wars: The Force Awakens literally will be a ‘force’ to reckon with.”
JJ Abrams, who is helming the film, is the perfect combination of cool and epic. The excitement has been incredible, and the campaign, which began with the launch of the first teaser in Dec ’14, continues to mount with every activation.
– Amrita Pandey, VP and Head of Marketing and Distribution, Studios, Disney India
Looks like the promotional blitzkrieg will only increase as the film heads closer to its release date. Are you listening, Bollywood?
(The writer is a journalist and a screenwriter who believes in the insanity of words, in print or otherwise. Follow him on Twitter: @RanjibMazumder)
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