Film industry crisis far from over

Non-Kannada film units set to impose embargoes
Times of India

Bangalore: The film industry crisis might be “solved’’ in Karnataka: But a day after a three-week moratorium against other languages was worked out, the Kannada industry faces a showdown with the rest of the film fraternity led by Bollywood.

The All India Joint Action Committee on the Karnataka issue — comprising Film Federation of India, South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce, Andhra, Kerala and TN film chambers — has decided to immediately impose seven embargoes it had planned against Kannada industry, which was on hold.

Besides this, individual producers who have films scheduled for release are planning to join Gemini Films in the Supreme Court case, where an interim stay has been granted against Karnataka’s seven-week moratorium on other languages.

“This is not a fish market, where you can bargain from seven weeks to three. There has to be simultaneous release, the Supreme Court has said so. We are not negotiating anything with the Kannada industry,’’ Film Producers Guild of India representative Manmohan Shetty told The Times of India over phone from Mumbai.

Eminent producer-director Yash Chopra, whose film Veer-Zaara is scheduled for a November 12 release with a record number of prints nation-wide, said he would take the three-week moratorium head on. “If anyone in Karnataka declines to distribute my film, I will do it myself. I have lost so much money in the late release of Dhoom,” he said.

AP Film Producers’ Association president Suresh Babu said not only Bollywood, but producers from all languages would take up the issue with the SC. “They promised to call us for a meeting and they haven’t even done that.”

Caught in the eye of this storm, Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce president H.D. Gangaraju said he would placate the feelings of the other industries. “We have not issued an order saying ‘three-week moratorium’. I will hold discussions with all the other industries,’’ he contended.

Non-Kannada film units to retaliate

Bangalore: A day after the Kannada film industry decided to impose a three-week moratorium on other language films, the Film Federation of India, South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce, Andhra, Kerala and Tamil Nadu film chambers on Thursday decided to impose embargoes which was on hold.

The embargoes against Kannada film industry are:

No other-language film will be released in Karnataka.
No heroes, heroines, directors, singers and technicians including junior artistes from other languages will work in Kannada.
No other language producers will produce Kannada movies.
No Kannada actors, producers or technicians will be permitted to work in any other industry.
No Kannada films will be dubbed into any other language.
No shooting will be done in Karnataka by any other language; Kannada films will be refused permission to shoot elsewhere.
Roping in Hollywood, Kodak and Fuji will be asked to limit raw stock to Kannada, Dolby and DTS to stop giving their equipment to the state.