Hollywood is the world’s epicentre for films, generating revenues of more than $43 billion each year according to Deadline. But some would say that the American film industry’s golden era is long over, with the best films coming in the 1980s and 1990s. There is now a common trend of reboots and sequels along with large scale superhero epics, and this is valued more highly than original and engaging storytelling. Bollywood is nowhere near as much as a global superpower as Hollywood, but the Indian film industry is progressing rapidly. The question is, could it ever catch up with the giant from which it took its name?
Bollywood Has a Massive Audience But is Limited in Scope
Bollywood may not be as big as Hollywood on a global scale, but it does have an impressively high audience which can rival the American film industry. In 2001, it was found that Bollywood outpaced Hollywood in terms of ticket sales. The Indian film industry sold 3.6 billion tickets that year to the Americans’ 2.6 billion.
The main problem for the Indian film industry is its lack of scope and the fact that it frequently mixes up genres in the classic “masala film.” One prime example of this type of movie is Manmohan Desai’s Amar Akbar Anthony. Films like this are much loved in India but may seem unattractive to an international filmgoer who will often search for and watch their particular favored genre. A common criticism of Indian film is its failure to provide a wide range of different film types. As noted by Scoop Whoop, the few varying genres are extremely easy to categorize.
Expanding into Other Media Will Help
If Bollywood wishes to try to catch up with Hollywood in terms of revenue, it may need to copy the American film industry’s expansion model which often crosses into other media. The 2010s brought about a turning point in film franchises which saw them spill over into games for multiple platforms.
A prime example of this was Jurassic World in 2015, which is the sixth-highest grossing film of all time with earnings of more than $1.6 billion worldwide. This was helped by the online slot title of the same name, along with mobile games such as Jurassic World Alive. These titles brought in viewers who may never have even thought to watch the film before falling in love with the games.
Now, according to CasinoWings, Bollywood is heading down a similar route. The casino review site claims that there are numerous new slot games coming out based on Bollywood and its movies. These games, which include Bollywood Story from NetEnt, are catering for a growing online casino market in the region. But they could also appeal to players from other countries which, in turn, would help bring word of the Indian film industry to a greater number of people.
The online casino industry is a good place to start for Bollywood, but it would also help to get more presence in other offshoots of the gaming industry including console and mobile. Another way for the Indian film industry to gain more attention would be to break out onto streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime.
