The Hindu : Karnataka News : Film industry stalemate takes a political turn

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Sep 13, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka

Film industry stalemate takes a political turn

By A. Jayaram

BANGALORE, SEPT. 12. The drift in the State's film industry continues and the Government is yet to pay heed to the appeal of the Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting, K. Jaipal Reddy, to lift the seven-week ban on non-Kannada films.

Meanwhile, Kannada film producers continue to be on the warpath threatening to launch a "Gokak-type agitation". The Gokak agitation launched by a group of Kannada writers and others in the early 1980s when R. Gundu Rao was the Chief Minister was with regard to the adoption of Kannada as the medium of instruction in primary schools.

Those in the movement had demanded that the recommendations of a committee headed by the writer V.K. Gokak be implemented. The outcome of the meeting of a committee headed by the Principal Secretary for Finance, K.P. Pandey, scheduled for Monday is awaited with keenness.

The panel comprises representatives of the film industry. However, the committee itself had not helped matters by upholding the demand of Kannada film producers for imposing the ban on screening new non-Kannada films.

The Government decided on the ban or delaying the screening of new non-Kannada films seven weeks after their release in the respective States (States where the language of the film is the official language).

Political turn

The stalemate in the film industry has even taken a definite political turn with the entry of the Congress MLA and former Minister, D.K. Shivakumar.

He attended a meeting convened here today by the Kannada Film Producers' Association. Mr. Shivakumar is stated to be an exhibitor owning a tent cinema in his Sathanur Assembly Constituency.

His entry is intriguing as one of those ranged against film producers on the issue of the seven-week ban on screening non-Kannada films is the Janata Dal (S) leader and MLA, H.D. Kumaraswamy, son of the former Prime Minister, H.D. Deve Gowda. Mr. Shivakumar's antagonism towards Mr. Gowda and his sons is well known.

Dissolves

In another development, the Karnataka Cinema Theatre Owners' Association dissolved itself following the announcement made by Mr. Kumaraswamy on Saturday that he was not heading it.

He had also disowned a statement issued by the association against the producers.

The announcement regarding the dissolution was made by K.V. Dhananjay who regretted Mr. Kumaraswamy's decision not to lead the body.

He was dissolving it as its credibility had suffered. Mr. Dhananjay also announced that the five-year ban on exhibiting the films of Rajendra Singh Babu, film producer, had been revoked.

They had formed the association to safeguard the interests of the exhibitors as also moviegoers.

Mr. Dhananjay regretted the ill will generated in the film industry in the past few weeks.

According to those in the film industry, the move against non-Kannada films followed the repeated failure of films featuring certain actors especially those belonging to a coterie.

The films failed though they had some multi-language heroines.

Quality

The quality of some Kannada films was so bad that even members of families of some of the leading producers were not bothering to take note of them. Some persons, who were no more than moneylenders, were attempting to control the industry and edging out well-meaning persons.

They recall that there was trouble in the industry at the time S. Ramesh, a former Congress Minister close to the Chief Minister, Dharam Singh, was elected President of the State Film Chamber of Commerce defying some vested interests.

The tendency of some in the industry to mobilise unruly fans of some artistes who indulge in violence at public places, to browbeat their opponents, is also being cited as the reason for the continuing crisis.

There is also a view that the Deputy Chief Minister, Siddaramaiah, should have shown firmness and not allowed himself to be dictated by some representatives of the industry.

The meeting should have been held at the Vidhana Soudha and not in public before a crowd of jeering film fans.

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