TFPC on digital warpath, but top stars at home with Qube

In one of the longest standoffs in the film industry, five weeks have passed without a single Tamil release. With Tamil New Year day just a week away, it’s most unusual that there is no big Tamil release slated to hit the screens. The bone of contention is the Tamil Film Producers Council (TFPC) protest against the virtual print fee (VPF) charged by DSPs, primarily Qube, which dominates the market. 

Ironically, while the film industry appears united in supporting this ban, despite a huge loss incurred by theatre owners, it looks like Qube enjoys huge patronage from leading Kollywood stars, who have the equipment installed in their homes and offices. Actors, including Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan, Ajith, Vijay and Dhanush, have Qube in their home theatres or even preview screens. 

Confirming this, Senthil Kumar, co-founder of Qube, explains how it works. “We install the equipment in their home theatres or houses as per their request. It costs about Rs 3-4 lakh. Whenever a film is screened exclusively for them, it happens at the behest of the producer and the area distributor, who do not pay VPF for this as it isn’t commercialised unlike the theatres.” 

Actor Udhayanidhi Stalin, also a leading producer and distributor under his home banner Red Giant Movies, says that he has Qube installed at his house. “I don’t have the privilege of watching films in theatres with my family. We watch new releases at home, especially that of my friends from the industry. For this, I need to request the producer to screen the film for me at home. Later, I send a mail to Qube, requesting them to send me the logistic, which is valid for 24 to 48 hours. We typically pay a sum of Rs 5,000-7,000 for a screening,” he says. 

When asked if an actor or producer can use this service to screen a film for a larger audience, Senthil Kumar says, “All they need is a good preview screen or home theatre.” However, Udhayanidhi says that such things cannot be done. 

SR Prabhu, a leading producer and the treasurer of Tamil Nadu Film Producers’ Council, says, “We are aware of how people abuse the privileges by installing Qube servers at their home. One classic example is the screening of films for 30 to 50 people at their home. Hence, we asked Qube to introduce a regulation in pricing for individual screening as well, so that the producers aren’t at loss. We will have to look in to this issue again in near future.”