Sun TV Network forays into film production

Sun TV Network has forayed into film production through its new division, Sun Pictures. The new division would produce and distribute films in the four Southern languages, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada.

The new venture will be headed by Hansraj Saxena, who is the COO of Sun TV Network.

Speaking to afaqs!, Saxena says, “We already have a strong presence in radio, television and print; so, we thought, ‘Let’s make it a complete bouquet’. This venture was long overdue. With this division, our company is complete now.”

Sun Pictures’ first film will be Atlantic Cinema’s Kadhalil Vizhinde, which has the chartbuster Vijay Antony number, Nakku Mukka and is a launch pad for Nakul of Boys fame. The film is slated for release by the end of September.

With a target of at least five films every month, Sun Pictures is hoping that this initiative will open a new revenue stream for the company, in addition to increasing the size of its vast movie library.

“We’ll make these films using big stars and newcomers both. And for this purpose, we have already signed contracts with leading artists, directors and music directors,” adds Saxena.

Though the company has kick started the venture with Tamil movies, it is looking forward to producing movies in other languages as well. At the moment, Saxena is busy reading scripts in different languages, to find an apt one to produce under the Sun banner.

Talking about future plans, Saxena says that the company plans to look at Hindi language films, but somewhat later. “We have some Hindi scripts with us, but it’ll take some time for any of it to materialise. First, we want to focus on the South Indian market. Only after making our mark here, we’ll venture into other markets,” he informs.

Unlike other production companies, Sun Pictures is not planning to enter the TV software business at the moment. “We never thought about entering the field, as there is no need to do so at the moment. But if in future, we feel that there is a demand for TV software, then we might enter the field,” Saxena states.

The Sun TV Network operates 20 channels in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam and is licensed to operate 44 radio stations across India.