“People are making and promoting films as if its 2018”: Trade and industry feel that the bad marketing campaign also affected Aamir Khan-starrer Laal Singh Chaddha’s prospects at the box office

By Fenil Seta -

August 18, 2022 - 4:00 PM IST

The Aamir Khan-starrer Laal Singh Chaddha was released in cinemas on August 11 with a lot of expectations. Sadly, it failed due to poor word of mouth. What shocked the industry is when it took a paltry start of Rs. 11.70 crores. It raised questions about whether the marketing campaign of the film failed to excite the audiences.

“People are making and promoting films as if its 2018”: Trade and industry feel that the bad marketing campaign also affected Aamir Khan-starrer Laal Singh Chaddha’s prospects at the box office

A marketing expert from an esteemed production house commented on the condition of anonymity, “I think two things impacted the film. Firstly, there was overconfidence and that led to a lack of planning for a campaign. Secondly, they just thought the star value will help them earn a lot of moolah at the box office and sail through rather than investing time and energy in building the film’s concept.”

He added, “The film industry should realize that it’s not a fair-weather scenario anymore. People are making and promoting films as if its 2018. Audiences have changed and their rage, anger - everything has changed. You have to address it. You can’t be in denial by claiming that ‘Mujhe kuch trade waale bol rahe hai ki meri film Rs. 20 crores pe khulegi’. You need to have ears to the ground, and face reality. You can’t believe that you are immune. Somewhere, that’s what they thought. Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Ranveer Singh, Ranbir Kapoor etc everyone has found it tough at the box office. Aap kisi alag mitti se toh nahi bane ho.”

Trade analyst Atul Mohan agreed, “The marketing was not up to the mark. But when the film is such, what they can do? When the content is exciting, everything around it also becomes exciting. Look at Liger for example. Dum hai trailer mein. So, even the marketing people are going all out.”

He further said, “The marketing (for LSC) was thanda. No ads were given in the newspapers. Do they really think that people in Jabalpur are checking social media to get awareness about Laal Singh Chaddha? In these places, ads in the newspaper still do the trick. Also, in cinemas, your posters or standees should be put up. These traditional marketing methods work. Pehle ke producers genius thay. They would send banners, posters, photo cards etc to the theatres 2-3 months in advance.”

When asked whether the makers didn’t go all out due to superstar Aamir Khan’s association with the film, he replied, So what if it's Aamir Khan? Everyone needs marketing. Our Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, too does aggressive marketing of himself.”

Atul Mohan also remarked, “With every film, Aamir Khan used to set a benchmark in terms of marketing trend. That was missing here.”

He reminded about a time when staffers in multiplexes were given the ‘Ghajini haircut’ when Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (2008) was released in cinemas, two weeks before the release of Ghajini (2008) During 3 Idiots (2009), he roamed at several places in disguise. Both these aspects grabbed headlines and added to his film’s hype.

Atul Mohan also put the blame on Viacom18 Studios, “Even the marketing of their last film, Shabaash Mithu, was poor. There should be awareness around your product.”

Trade veteran Taran Adarsh, on the other hand, opined, “The marketing could have been more aggressive, like how Aamir Khan has always believed in, in the past. However, the content was slightly low-key” He disagreed that the film failed to open due to the marketing aspect, “It all boils down to the content. Word of mouth se badhkar kuch nahi hota. The quality of the trailer also plays a crucial role.”

Finally, Girish Johar, producer and film business analyst, said, “Having seen the content, I don’t see any other way it could have been marketed. The music was fantastic. It was one of the key pillars of the film. You love it once you see the film as you relate to the context of the film better.”

He continued, “That’s what Aamir did. He released the music first. Then he came with the snippets of the film followed by the trailer. Hence, I don’t think he could have marketed the film in any other way. What he shouldn’t have done is accept that boycott is affecting his film. Akshay Kumar played very smartly in this context.”

Girish Johar also made it clear that, “Agar film acchi hoti, toh yeh sab se kuch fark nahi padta.” He signed off by saying, “It’s very easy in hindsight to discuss these things. But from the experience that I have, I believe that if content clicks, nothing else matters. Look how Karthikeya 2 trended.”

The marketing of Laal Singh Chaddha was handled by Viacom 18 Studios and Aamir Khan Productions.

Also Read: Ekta Kapoor comes out in support of Aamir Khan after Laal Singh Chaddha debacle; says, “All the Khans in Bollywood, especially Aamir Khan, are legends”