Laxmmi Bomb is releasing on the OTT platform Hotstar but as the announcement of cinemas opening came out last week there is a good chance that the film may well get a simultaneous release in theatres in INDIA as well. It will be difficult to get a release in the national chains as they will probably not agree to screen the film which is releasing on OTT at the same time.

But other multiplexes across the country and single screens may take the film of exhibition despite the OTT release. The case of the national chains is understandable here as they dont want to set a precedent where a simultaneous release becomes a norm but when cinemas open it will be a situation never seen before so maybe things have to be done a bit out of the box.

It is difficult to see this become the norm when the world is not struggling with Covid19 as cinema will be cinema and the revenue coming from theatres can not be covered by digital unless of course your film is a flop but nobody makes a film to flop. Eventually there is not going to be much content when cinemas open and Laxmmi Bomb even with an OTT release will be able to attract a bigger audience then the other films around.

Its a very uncertain period so the national chains should understand this is a temporary situation and the industry should get together and assure them of this. Laxmmi Bomb is a Fox Studios film who have all the rights of the film and Hotstar being a sister platform they can do this but films taken by other OTT platforms like Amazon and Netflix will not be able to do this as these companies have paid a premium for the digital rights for first release. So here the National Chains should be able to see that in a normal situation the digital rights will not fetch the high prices if there is simultaneous release in cinemas so for the real films this way of monetization cannot work in the long run.

Its a temporary situation and the chains also need content and Laxmmi Bomb will be the best Hindi content that there will be so may be worth a try and change the rules regarding simultaneous OTT release while we are in this temporary situation and then go back to normal when the situation gets better. The national chains will still hold the cards when things are more normal as all the real filmmakers need theatres for the best monetization.

The theatrical release of the film will depend on a few factors like how many states are allowing cinemas to open by Diwali and then how many cinemas are prepared to take the film as it will be also release on OTT at the same time. If the national chains agree to release then a theatrical release is almost certain. The Hollywood film are not coming till next year so there has to be temporary change in policy to get content but it remains to be seen if this happens. Laxmmi Bomb coming in theatres on Diwali will give the industry a boost irrespective of what happens in terms of numbers as just to see a major Hindi film in theatres will be a sight for sore eyes.