Kannada filmdom: Uncertainty persists

Kannada filmdom: Uncertainty persists

Kannada

BANGALORE: The Joint Action Committee of Indian film industry (JAC) along with Film Federation of India (FFI) and the Andhra Pradesh Film Chambers of Commerce (APFCC) meeting with Karnataka deputy CM Siddharamiah and the Karnataka Film Chambers of Commerce (KFCC) to sort out the issues related to Kannada filmdom has been postponed to a later date.

Meanwhile the APFCC has denied reports appeared in some sections of the media that FFI had dropped the proposed sanctions against the Kannada film Industry keeping in mind that the moratorium on non-Kannada films had been reduced to three weeks instead of the earlier seven weeks moratorium.

APFCC has threatened to go to the Supreme Court (SC) to resolve the issue, saying that every non-Kannada film producer will follow Gemini's route to get their films released simultaneously across India, including Karnataka, if the need arose. Gemini's Shankardada MBBS (Telugu) has been released across Karnataka after intervention from the SC on the basis of a writ petition filed by Gemini.

Normally Diwali is the boom time for theaters, and a number of non-Kannada films are slated for a 12 November release. Non-Kannada film producers would like to ensure that the moratorium issue is sorted out by then so that films are released simultaneously in Karnataka.

"Actually the Indian film industry wants the CM or the deputy CM to intervene and end the moratorium issue once and for all, but, it was Siddharamiah himself who had backed the Kannada film producers when they had a massive rally in September. This moratorium has no legal sanction. How will the Karnataka government extricate itself from this mess is to bee seen," said a theater owner to indiantelevison.com, "Dhoom has been a hit. I would have made at least Rs. One lakh (Rs.100,000/-) a day if the movie had been released here at the same as elsewhere in India," he added.