There can be no replay of the Jai Santoshi Maa success story. The film, made on a meagre Rs 15-lakh budget, was a stupendous all-India hit. Assured audiences today demand an extravaganza. Hype flies high, borne on whispers over a films cost-an unabashed Rs 15 to 20 crore budget.
Parvez Farooqui, Subhash Ghais executive director, reveals the cost of just filming the hero preening before the camera may be Rs 1 lakh a day. (More expensive days hit the Rs 3-lakh mark). Outdoor shootings are also steep-a 20-day shooting stint at Manali means a huge Rs 80 lakh to Rs 1.5 crore outlay. Shahrukh had reportedly taken a Rs 90-lakh loan to hire a camera and related equipment for Phir Bhi..
Technicians, who may whittle down price if working for big banners, charge anywhere from Rs 1 to 5 lakh. A cameramans price-graph begins at Rs 2 lakh and may peak up to Rs 20 lakh.
Mahesh Bhatt, however, believes a filmmaker can cut costs by one-fourth by dint of his discipline, spending 50 per cent on stars. Vinay Shukla, director, offers a stark break-up-stars (including star technicians) mop up 60 per cent, publicity 20 per cent and the rest for daily shooting. Boney Kapoor will split up his rupee differently. Twenty paise for stars (brother Anil, as family member, must come cheap), 10 paise for music, 10 paise for marketing, while the rest is swallowed up by shooting, sometimes overseas as Pukaar was, in Alaska and other exotic locales. Which, as critics harp, could be better managed. Trade scribe Komal Nahata derides indifferent shoot cancellations.
Mehra says endless retakes means tiresome delays, (Pukaar and China Gate), just double film shooting costs.Contrarily, as filmmaking touches extravagant heights, the filmmaker must stoop to being the thrifty Uncle Scrooge.
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