11 films have been released in theaters since Baisakh. Except for 'Lalibazar', none of them have been able to make a profit. The film 'Lalibazar' directed by Yama Thapa, released on Baisakh 25, had a business of over Rs 87.85 crore, according to the latest box office report of the Film Development Board released last Monday. The film is still being shown in theaters.

'Paralko Ago' is one of the highest grossers after 'Lalibazar'. 'Paralko Ago' directed by Laxman Sunar, released on Baisakh 11, has a business of Rs 42.8 crore, according to the report till Monday.

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'Meet Jyu' directed by Anil Budhamagar, released on Jestha 8, had a business of around Rs 13.11 crore. Based on the data till Monday, The film 'Roll No. 1', released on Jestha 25, has done a box office business of only 94 lakh 91 thousand. Similarly, the film 'Kazi' has done 44 lakh, 'Life Damage' has done 34 lakh, 'Kumbh' has done 3 lakh, 'Malati Mangale' has done 51 lakh, 'Guruama' has done 29 lakh, 'Ek Muthi Badal' has done 5 lakh and 'Pahad' has done only around 63 lakh.

Incidentally, the Nepali-language Indian film 'Shape of Momo' was also released on Jestha 15. Although the film could not do business in Nepal, it received positive praise from film lovers, filmmakers and critics.

During this period, the films in which 'Chaltika Anuha' acted also did not do well. 'Meet Jyu' had actors Dayahang Rai and Saugat Malla in the lead roles. Actor Bipin Karki played the lead role in the film 'Kazi'. Actor Bipin also played an important role in the film 'Pahad'. Actor Vijay Baral played the lead role in the film 'Malati Mangale'. Actress Suraksha Panta played the lead role in the film 'Life Damage'. Similarly, actress Aanchal Sharma played the lead role in the film 'Ek Muthi Badal'. Based on the data so far, neither the films of new directors have done business since Baisakhi, nor have the comebacks of established makers been successful.

Out of the 57 films released in 2082 BS, only 4 films had a business of over 100 million. 37 films had a business of less than 10 million.

The producer himself says - not only now, it has been like this since before

In the experience of film producer and distributor Prachandaman Shrestha, Nepali films have been continuously incurring losses in the past as well. ‘This is not just now, it has been like this for a long time. Nepali films have a cycle, where a film changes course, then rises for a while and then starts to fall again,’ he says, ‘Now there is a need for a film or maker that can bring a new paradigm shift.’

Prachandaman remembers that when digital technology was introduced for the first time while the film industry was continuously suffering losses, Nepali audiences increased. ‘When Nepali films shifted to digital technology after Sano Sansar, the scenes that used to look blurry started to appear clear on the screen. The attraction of the audience increased even then,’ he says.

Ganeshdev Pandey, director of the films ‘Manjari’, ‘Gajabaja’ and ‘Pari Butwal’, blames ‘content’ for the failure of most of the films released in the past 2 months. He said that looking at the trailers of the latest films, none of them attracted much attention except a few. He says that the younger generation does not trust Nepali films. ‘The younger generation has stopped trusting Nepali film makers. There are few films that make you want to watch after watching the trailer. Due to the lack of passionate film makers and knowledge in the industry, films tend to become dull and boring,’ he says.

He also talks about how the fact that we are taught from a young age in our society that we should ‘earn money’ affects art. ‘We are not taught that we should acquire knowledge or practice and work hard. Even in filmmaking, people work only for temporary money,’ he adds. ‘Instead of paying attention to the sensibilities of the society and the sensibilities of the audience, when making a film, they only focus on the star, a song and extremely expensive promotions.’

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For a film to run, the screenplay must keep the audience hooked. He says that although a pattern has changed after 'Loot', the weakness of the screenplay in many recent films has affected the business. After the release of 'Kabaddi', 'Chhakka Panja' or 'Purna Bahadur Ko Sarangi', everyone started thinking only of 'telling the story of the village and making people cry'. But today's young audience understands many things and is more inclined to watch international cinema,' he says.

He has experienced that some films, even though they are good, are deprived of being released due to bias. 'Those in charge of distribution lack ideas on how to run films. Sometimes, when good films are already 'small' by the market and distributors, those films do not reach the public,' he says.

Pandey understands that the recent trend of chasing 'stars' instead of investing money in making good films or finding good actors is also adding to the problem. ‘There is a perception here that since the star is more popular than a good actor, he should get more money, and its effect is visible in the work,’ he says. 

Producer and distributor Prachandaman also claims that the audience’s trust in Nepali films has been decreasing recently. That is why he believes that only highly marketed films are being released.  ‘The brand value and loyalty of Nepali films are weakening.  The general middle-class audience is getting the impression that even after spending money in the theater, the film is not the same,’ he says.

According to him, there is a lot of copying success in Nepal.  At one time, when comedy films started being released, everyone started making similar films.  ‘Recently, focusing only on ‘tear-jerking’ dramas has made the audience watch a film with the same kind of emotion,’ he says, ‘The choices, tastes and emotions of today’s audience have changed and filmmakers and actors have become irrelevant to those changes.’ Shrestha says that forceful marketing also affects other films. He clarifies, ‘In some cases, forceful marketing is done.’ However, the content of the film does not have the same spirit. That affects other films.’