Why isn't Sapta Sagaradaache Ello Side B releasing in Hindi? Rakshit Shetty answers...

With Kannada cinema increasingly finding footing outside of Karnataka, filmmakers here have begun proactively thinking up strategies to release their films. The latest to join this growing list is Hemanth M Rao's Sapta Sagaradaache Ello Side B, which is set to release in theatres on November 17 in all South Indian languages including the original, Kannada. 

With the first part or Side A of the film, which released on September 1, 2023, attracting a lot of praise and love from all parts of the country, the makers are now ensuring that the dubbed versions of Side B do not stay confined to the OTT and are instead given a prominent theatrical release. 

Huge publicity costs in the Hindi market

But why has team Sapta Sagaradaache Ello opted Hindi out of the equation and stuck only to South India? "It's a huge market to tackle," said Rakshit Shetty, who also happens to be the film's producer, while shedding light on how the team is forging ahead as far as the release is concerned. 

Also Read: Sapta Sagaradaache Ello Side B: Hemanth M Rao discloses the reason to postpone the release 

"You cannot simply release a film there (in the Hindi market) because it has earned a good response from the audience. You are required to spend 4 to 5 crores on publicity alone, and it is a big effort in general. And that wasn't something we were comfortable with," he added, while addressing the media along with Hemanth M Rao and the rest of the team in Bengaluru recently

"The Hindi dubbed version is ready but..."

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Does that mean Sapta Sagaradaache Ello Side B won't be available in Hindi? "We are definitely dubbing the film in Hindi," he shares, with Hemanth M Rao then disclosing that even the Hindi dubbed version of the film is ready. 

"The Hindi version is ready for release should the demand occur once the other versions are out in theatres," said the filmmaker. 

Over the past couple of years, Kannada filmmakers have adopted a flexible approach to the dubbing conundrum, with only select films opting for the 'pan-India' status. It is apparent that the term 'demand' plays a huge role in how the strategy is shaped because titles like KGF 2 and Kantara were major successes in Hindi along with the rest of the languages whereas a film like Hostel Hudugaru Bekagiddare was dubbed only in Telugu (as 'Boys Hostel). 

Also Read: Rakshit Shetty Exclusive | 'A hero like Manu, a film like Sapta Sagaradaache Ello feel relevant to the times we live in' 

In the same interaction, Rakshit Shetty revealed that the team had originally intended to give the Malayalam version of Side A a theatrical release, but owing to the pre-decided commitments to Amazon Prime Video, they weren't able to do so. Sapta Sagaradaache Ello Side B, now, will release all over South India on the same day with Sakthivelan coming in as the distributor for the Tamil version, Prithviraj Sukumaran for the Malayam version and People Media Factory for the Telugu release. KVN Productions is releasing the film in Karnataka.