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MUMBAI:
Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni today
announced that a National Heritage Mission was proposed to
be set up with a budget of Rs 6.60 billion which will plan
the celebration of one hundred years of Indian cinema in a
major way.
Addressing
the valedictory session of the three-day Ficci Frames and
answering questions later, Soni also announced that a sum
of Rs 520 million had been set aside by the Planning Commission
for the National Centre for Animation, Gaming and Visual Effects.
Soni
also announced that every effort was being made to complete
the Museum of the Moving Image being constructed in Mumbai
by 2013 and steps had already been taken to approve the architectural
plan.
Regarding
Phase III for FM radio expansion, Soni said that the draft
guidelines drawn up by her Ministry had already been placed
before the Union Cabinet which was expected to been taken
up shortly.
Even as she promised to come down on pirates of software with
a heavy hand, Soni said no one could be permitted to ‘hijack
the law of the land’ and prevent the screening of any
film.
Ficci
Entertainment Committee Chairman Yash Chopra, tennis star
turned Hollywood filmmaker Ashok Amritraj, actor Vidya Balan,
Dutch Consul General Marijke van Drunen Little, and Ficci
Secretary General Amit Mitra were present on the occasion.
She
agreed that it was unethical to charge VAT on the input and
Service Duty on the output, and therefore had stated as much
to Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. However, she promised
to accompany a delegation of the film industry to meet him
on the subject and expressed the hope that he will accept
the demand.
In
a clear reference to the attempts to stop the screening of
Shah Rukh Khan’s ‘My Name is Khan’, the Minister
said ‘self-styled moralists do not get legitimacy’
merely by using illegal means to put pressure on others. She
said that the visit of Rahul Gandhi to Mumbai and taking a
local train was meant to give a symbolic message in the same
tone.
Soni
said law and order was a state subject and therefore checking
such forces or stopping pirates was a matter that could be
looked into by the state governments. This includes preventing
the pirates from getting hold of DVDs easily.
She
said the Government was also moving towards amending the Cinematograph
Act 1952 and the Copyright Act to help check piracy and bring
laws in tune with changing technologies.
She
claimed entertainment tax had been reduced in most states
and it was not more than 40 per cent in any state.
She
admitted that pirates took away the rightful earnings of filmmakers
and she was committed to stopping that. A task force set up
within the Ministry had been asked to give its report within
six months, and a Group of State Information Ministers headed
by the Andhra Pradesh Information Minister Dr Geetha Reddy
had also been set up for this purpose.
She
said that the entertainment sector had continued to grow even
at the time of the recession and had, in fact, contributed
to the growth rate of the economy.
At
the same time, she said the Government was keen to expedite
digitisation in the country to curb piracy, and the approval
of Headend-In-The-Sky (HITS) policy was a step in that direction.
She
said though Indian cinema had taken huge strides, it was still
to make a major impact on the world stage. She said technological
innovations and creativity needed to move together towards
this.
She
applauded Indian filmmakers for continuing to deliver social
messaging through their films, and many like Vidya Balan also
taking time off to do social work such as working for HIV
Positive patients.
Earlier,
Chopra in his welcome address raised the issue of service
tax, piracy, and amendments to the Copyright Act.
Little
said the Netherlands had set up Media and Entertainment India
to collaborate with Indian entrepreneurs, since the Indian
film industry was the largest growing in the world. She said
the growth of creativity was unstoppable and there was immense
potential for collaboration between the two countries. Fifteen
Dutch companies had come together to form ME India, she said.
Amritraj
called for giving the script writers – ‘the unsung
heroes’ - their due if the film industry had to thrive,
tackle piracy strictly, and put in more money to promote films
overseas.
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