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PHOTO: M. VEDHAN

STAR-STUDDED SHOW Some of the celebrities at the inaugural function of CIFF, 2007

Do you know how much the State Government spends to organise the local International film festival, the only window for World Cinema in the State?

Zilch. The fifth edition of Chennai International Film Festival (CIFF) currently under way, has 126 films from 43 countries, over 2,000 delegates queuing up to watch them in packed, cramped spaces. If you also consider that 30 per cent of the world cinema that hits the country’s biggest festival, the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa, also visits Chennai, the festival is a goldmine for the movie buff. Turns out that the organisers, Indo Cine Appreciation Forum, could not afford better screening halls because of limited resources. The IFFI, put together by the Government of India and the Entertainment Society of Goa, supported by the State Government, shells out close to Rs. 3 crore every year to create a festival atmosphere, the costs shared equally by the Central and the State Governments. “The State Government definitely has a role to play in promoting these festivals,”

Neelam Kapur, Director of Film Festivals who runs IFFI, tells MetroPlus. “Someone has to provide a neutral platform. Indian cinema is large and in many ways fragmented and local Governments need to do their bit. For any one body to do it is an uphill task because it may not have the means. Someone needs to work in it full time. The Government has to provide the platform,” she explains. But for Rs. 3 lakh spent by the tourism department of the AIADMK Government in 2005, the CIFF has got absolutely no financial assistance from the State.

“We are thankful that the Government has given us all the permissions and exemptions needed to pull off an event of this scale,” clarifies E. Thangaraj, Festival Director of CIFF. Ask him about the financial support and he diplomatically ducks the question, not quite willing to blame the Government.

Sreedhar Pillai, trade analyst, says, “In Kerala, the film festival is such a success because no matter which Government is in power, they have gone out of their way to support it. The Government owns ten theatres spread across the State and three in Thiruvananthapuram where films are screened during the festival. Without Government support, no festival can be successful. Here the Government could get screening space from Sathyam and INOX or subsidise the costs.”

The recent edition of the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) screened 238 films across nine cinema halls with about 7,000 delegates, at a cost of Rs.1 crore, 95 per cent of it funded by the State Government. Bina Paul, Artistic Director of IFFK, says, “The festival is successful because it is completely a Government initiative. For the kind of income that comes into any State through cinema, this is one way the Government can extend support… by investing in a film festival that brings cinema from around the world. There is not a State where cinema is not a paying industry. It is the enlightened Governments such as Kerala, West Bengal and now Delhi that have recognised this and contributed to the cause of cinema.”

Director K. Hariharan, founder of the Indian Independent Filmmakers Foundation, believes the Kerala, Bangalore and Pune film festivals have done well because there are many established filmmakers who are behind the festival movement. “If we asked Mani Ratnam, Balu Mahendra and Bharathiraja, who are conscious about good cinema and international cinema, to select the films, filmmakers and critics from around the world would take it more seriously. Why should a celebrated filmmaker send his film to any festival unless it has credibility? Also, why depend on Government support? If it supports the event, good enough, but once the credibility is established, we can get corporate support. Look at the Margazhi music festival; it is highly successful.”

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