Strangely enough the trend of films that have been doing for the past one year shows that the audience is interested more in out of the box type of films. This has left one of the major players in the industry in cold. Yash Raj films has been performing consistently well over the years. But right now, things are not as smooth as it may appear on the surface. One of the major films Tashan from Yash Raj films failed to impress the audience.
Here is one more most-awaited films Thoda Pyaar, Thoda Magic from Yash Raj Films releases today. This film again brings together the trio of Kunal Kohli, Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukherji, the hit trio of Hum Tum. The film will prove a major test for the Yash Raj Films. The film is co-produced by Kunal Kohli.
Thoda Pyaar, Thoda Magic is the story of a businessman, an angel and four naughty kids. Said to be a Mary Poppins adaptation, the film brings Rani as an angel, Saif as a businessman and Ameesha Patel as a sexy siren. Though Kunal Kohli denied that it is a remake of Mary Poppins, he hasn’t denied the uncanny resemblance of the two films. The music of the film has not yet done well on the charts even with the sensuous track Lazy Lamhe that shows the curvy and slimmer Ameesha Patel trying to seduce the audience.
In the past two years, there have not been any major successes from the YRF camp. YRF has decided to spend about Rs 3.5 billion in filmmaking in the next couple of years. In comparison to big corporation houses like Reliance Entertainment and Indian Films, this investment is not high enough. Yash Raj camp still has some loyals like Shah Rukh, Rani and Amitabh Bachchan. Even with star power like Saif, Akshay and Kareena, Tashan failed at the box office. Even when Akshay had given back to back hits in 2007, he came under criticism for this film. YRF has been giving master pieces to the Indian audience so far but their understanding of the audience’s taste has come under question.
This is probably the reason, why YRF is venturing into different arenas. The company has signed a venture with Dubai Infinity Holdings to build an entertainment district named Yash Raj District. The theme of the district will be set around the YRF banner right from 1979. Films like Daag, Deewar, Trishul, Mashaal, Vijay, Chandni and Darr put Yash Chopra right at the top. Aditya Chopra proved a strong successor with his directorial debut Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. After this huge success, Hum Tum, Veer Zaara, Dhoom, Bunty Aur Babli, Fanaa are complete entertainers.
But films like Neal ‘n’ Nikki, Kabul Express, Ta Ra Rum Pum, Jhoom Barabar Jhoom, Laaga Chunari Mein Daag, Aja Nachle and then Tashan failed to keep the flag high.
Where as a quite different film Chak De! India proved all speculation wrong and was a huge hit and pulled some major awards as well.
The fact that Thoda Pyaar, Thoda Magic’s performance on the box office matters a lot now is not to be ignored. The next release is starring newcomer Ranbir Kapoor, titled Bachna Ae Haseeno doesn’t seem to invite much interest. There is also an animation Roadside Romeo with a tie up with Disney. YRF also has one of the surprise stunners with Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, starring SRK and a young debutant. Looks like Yash Raj Films needs a hit desperately.
