Kantara to Pushpa: Why only big southern spectacles click up north

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Several dubbed south Indian films have struck a popular chord with Hindi-speaking audiences and found box-office success in the past. Yet, makers of recent mid-budget Tamil, Telugu, or Malayalam movies such as The Girlfriend and Kaantha have refrained from aggressive distribution and marketing push in north India.

Even with stars Hindi audiences recognise, such as Rashmika Mandanna and Dulquer Salmaan, producers of small and mid-budget southern films often see little value in spending on a Hindi release, including dubbed versions, entertainment industry experts said. This is because only big-ticket, action-driven projects and dramas heavy on visual effects (VFX) are seen to resonate with Hindi movie-goers, limiting the appeal of niche cinema from the south. Instead, they opt to sell streaming rights and premiere on OTT within four weeks of the theatrical release.

As a result, their Hindi versions, if they exist, aren’t shown by national multiplex chains in north India. “A lot of small and mid-budget films choose not to go all out in the Hindi belt because the economics simply don’t make sense. For a film made for ₹15–20 crore or less, the marketing costs in the Hindi-speaking markets can easily exceed the production budget.

Without strong familiarity with the actors in the Hindi market, it becomes tough to drive first-day footfalls. So even when a film is dubbed, producers prefer to stay focused on home states where they’re confident of steady recovery, instead of taking a risky, expensive nationwide approach," said Bhuvanesh Mendiratta, managing director of Miraj Entertainment Ltd, which operates multiplex theatres. For now, southern cinema's bid for the northern market is likely to