The Telugu film industry typically makes over 300 films annually, but many of them don't even see the release due to financial turmoils at the release time.
Those which are released face failure due to poor audience reception. But only a few films, around 10, may breathe success.
Coming to 2025, a total of 152 films hit the screens, including the next two months' scheduled films in November and December.
But so far, only a few films have ended up as successful: OG, Sankranthiki Vastunnam, Court, Mirai, Mad Square, and Little Hearts.
Another 15 films are yet to release, and we don’t know if any of them would add to the list of successes. This is the success at the box office.
But the ROI is heavily based on OTT rights. The post-COVID-19 era opened new doors for filmmakers in the form of OTT platforms.
About four to five active platforms were buying films at high prices, but now that demand is shrinking. Every OTT platform has a fixed annual budget to acquire a limited number of films. Once that budget is exhausted, they stop buying, no matter the content.
It has so far been proven that one successful film inspires a hundred new filmmakers, but a hundred failed films hardly discourage ten.
That is how the film industry continues to live, with investors stepping in with the anticipation of winning at the box office, a typical gambler's mindset. However, the situation is changing now.
Shootings are also slowing down due to uncertainty about selling films and recovering investments.
Many corporate companies that are investing in Telugu filmmaking are also delaying the process with heavy negotiations.
A source says OTT platforms are now strategically buying no more than 25 films from a language a year, and the pricing has become highly competitive.
That means out of 150 films released in 2025, only about 25 get sold to OTT platforms, while the remaining 125 rely solely on box office returns and often end up without OTT rights at all. This is an alarming situation.
Even the bigger films are now struggling to close OTT deals.
- Prabhas’ The Raja Saab is yet to finalize its OTT business officially, though makers claim it is almost done at the desired price.
- Chiranjeevi’s Mana Shankara Vara Prasad Garu, set for a Pongal release, has also not closed its deal, with insider sources reporting a huge gap between the asking and offering prices.
- The fate of Swayambhu, starring Nikhil, remains uncertain despite the actor’s pan-Indian appeal and previous hits. The film’s OTT deal is pending, delaying its release date.
- Akhanda 2 also has not closed its OTT deal, but the makers have decided to release it in December as planned, regardless.
Producers are lamenting the rising production costs, mainly due to the unrealistic remunerations of star heroes, a trend that is hurting the industry badly.
One producer said, “The star heroes and top directors should reduce their remunerations to help the industry survive. There is no second thought about it. Even before COVID, this issue existed, but OTT platforms gave hope post-pandemic, inflating remunerations further. Now that OTTs are cutting down their budgets, there is no scope to pay such high amounts anymore.”
Another producer added, “Unless star heroes become part of the production, things will not move forward. If the film performs well in theatres and on OTT, they can take their share proportionally. Payments should be on a nominal minimum guarantee wage and the rest on a profit-sharing basis, not the big fat fixed remunerations paid before production even begins.”
A senior producer concluded, “Content is everywhere today. Entertainment is available on mobile phones. To compete with this world, production costs must be cut drastically. Heroes and highly paid technicians should reduce their remunerations to give the industry some breathing space. Or else, the OTTs should increase their investments to feed this expensive filmmaking.”
In short, almost every producer points to star remunerations as the major culprit behind rising production costs, which keeps the film industry in constant turmoil.