Hollywood blockbusters break into India

难词探意

1. encroach /ɪn'krəʊtʃ/ v. 侵占

2. franchise /'fræntʃaɪz/ n. 特许经营权

3. dub /dʌb/ v. 配音

4. smash /smæʃ/ n. 十分走红的电影

5. instalment /ɪn'stɔːlmənt/ n. (电影的)一部

Hollywood superheroes are muscling in on the Indian box office, the world's biggest by tickets sold, helping US studiosencroachon Bollywood's local dominance. The fourth-quarter ticket sales for US films in India were up 114 percent on a year earlier while Bollywood's box office take rose only 34 percent, according to Emkay.

American films have long struggled to make a splash in India, where Mumbai-based Bollywood and other regional film industries pump out more than 1,000 films a year.

But the rise offranchisessuch as Walt Disney-owned Marvel's Avengers or Warner Bros subsidiary DC's Batman has ushered in a boom in audiences for big-budget Hollywood productions.

Hollywood films took 10 percent of India's box office in 2018, up from just 3 percent a decade earlier, according to EY's most recent figures. That share is expected to have risen in 2019 thanks to Avengers: Endgame, among the country's highest-ever grossing films.

“Hollywood is taking India very seriously because it's disproportionately big,” said GV Giri, head of research at brokerage IIFL. There's“a greater eagerness of big franchises to lock up deals in India and have more publicity and more campaigns”.

India's young population, rising incomes and the spread of multiplex chains have encouraged US studios to invest more in the market.

Studios such as Paramount and Universal nowdubtheir films not only into Hindi but to other regional languages such as Tamil. Lionsgate, which is behind franchises such as The Hunger Games, has followed US rivals in opening an office in India.

But industry analysts said that apart from superherosmashesand select animations such as Disney's Lion King remake, other types of American films still struggle. For drama and comedy, Indian audiences prefer local productions with familiar stars and themes.

Despite the boom in ticket sales, revenues for Hollywood's biggest releases remain tiny in India compared with the US or neighbouring China, where the latest Avengersinstalment raked in roughly 10 times more.

The average ticket price at an Indian singlescreen theatre in 2018 was $0.70, against almost$10 in the US. Tickets in China typically cost about $5-$6.

The larger opportunity for the US studios lies in using the popularity of their films for other areas of commerce such as merchandise sales, according to Rakesh Jariwala, media and entertainment partner at EY in Mumbai.

Indian studios have also fought off encroaching Hollywood heavyweights with a flurry of their own epic blockbusters. The 2017 sequel to the historical battle movie Baahubali, for example, became one of the highest grossing Indian films of all time.

Given India's young population, Mr Giri expects the focus on action and special effects to pay off for both local and international studios.

“When I was a kid I couldn't get more than one movie in a decade on superman,” he said.“This would have been a dream for us... Today's kids have it all laid out for them.”

Reading

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1. What percentage did Hollywood films take of India's box office about ten years ago?

A. 30%. B. 10%. C. 7%. D. 3%.

2. What makes US studios invest more in Indian market?

A. Indians' demand. B. Indians' rising incomes.

C. Flexible marketing strategies. D. Hollywood's biggest releases.

3. In industry analysts' opinion, what can we infer about American films except select animations and superhero smashes?

A. They aren't appreciated very much. B. They gain good recognition.

C. Their ticket prices are high. D. They are only popular among adults.

4. Which of the following is one of the most popular Indian films?

A. Avengers: Endgame. B. Batman. C. Baahubali. D. The Hunger Games.

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Sentence for writing

American films have long struggled to make a splash in India, where Mumbai-based Bollywood and other regional film industries pump out more than 1,000 films a year.

【翻译】____________________________

【点石成金】句中的to make a splash in India为不定式短语作目的状语，where引导的是非限制性定语从句，修饰先行词India。 动词短语pump out意为“大量生产（或制造）”。