Theatre owners refuse to screen Viswaroopam over Kamal Hassan's stand

COIMBATORE: Amidst rumors that actor Kamal Hassan was going ahead with his plans to make available his latest film 'Viswaroopam' on DTH network a day ahead of its theatre release, Tamil Nadu Theatre Owners Association on Wednesday appealed to him to desist from any such attempt which may turn detrimental to the Tamil film industry already in crisis.
Talking to media persons here, association office bearers also hinted that they would not allow the film to release in theatres if the actor goes ahead with his plan."We will not cooperate with the film release if he makes it available to DTH network a day ahead of the release,'' said R Panneerselvam, general secretary of the association after presiding over a meeting of theatre owners in Coimbatore and neighbouring districts.
'Viswaroopam' is a spy thriller and is being directed at a total cost of Rs 90 crore. Kamal had announced that the movie would be released in DTH Format through a private provider a day before the theatre release to televisions. Kamal justified his move by saying that such a move was necessary to get back all the investments being made in the film. This has caused a lot of uproar among the theatre owners.
Panneerselvam slammed the move saying it will adversely affect the theatre industry. "People reach theatres to see the heroes. If they can see them at their homes, how many would think of coming to the theatres," he said. The theatres are facing trouble after 'SMS' regarding films are sent from foreign countries like Singapore where they are released a day before. Moreover, piracy and free availability of the movies in several formats have also affected the theatre business. Once Kamal Hassan comes with such an idea, other producers too will follow suite, he said.
Regarding Kamal's argument that he was merely adopting technological trends, the theatre owners said that even Hollywood films are released on DTH format only after a year of its release.