Laila Majnu, Manichitrathazhu: Indians flock to cinemas to watch older films

Taran Adarsh, a Bollywood analyst, says these re-releases are making up for a lack of new films and lacklustre box-office performances.

The re-releases have little to no promotion, with posters simply popping up on ticket booking sites or circulating on social media. “It’s driven purely by nostalgia or an audience’s love for a film that already has a cult following,” says Mr Adarsh.

In Tamil and Telugu, the re-releases have been more star-driven. Recent videos show fans of Telugu superstar Chiranjeevi dancing to a hit song from his 2002 hit Indra in cinemas. Pawan Kalyan’s Gabbar Singh (2012) is set to release next week. In Tamil, Vijay’s Ghilli (2004) ran to packed halls in April.

“It’s usually the film of a superstar whose star may have just been rising 20 years ago or a film that was already a hit,” says Sreedhar Pillai, an analyst who tracks the southern film industries. “It has to be driven by nostalgia and have a connection with an actor who is a big star today.”

Malayalam superstar Mohanlal has two such films – Devadoothan (2000) and Manichithrathazhu (1993) – currently running in cinemas in Kerala. Coincidentally, both are horror films.

Devadoothan, an eerie film with beautiful songs which flopped when it first released, has been running to packed cinemas for more than a month.

Mr Pillai says that Manichithrathazhu, a cult classic which broke box-office records when it first released, is probably the biggest “success story” among re-releases in southern India.

“It’s an iconic film. A huge blockbuster when it was released, and now it’s also getting the young audience,” he says.

Sometimes, the prospect of a sequel can drive interest in the first film.

Last year, the 2001 film Gadar: Ek Prem Katha had another successful run in cinemas after its sequel Gadar 2 became a massive hit, says Mr Nahta.

But the re-release of Kamal Haasan’s Indian this year did not see similar success because its sequel Indian 2 did not perform well, he adds.