Exhibitors defiant, to fight moratorium

Exhibitors defiant, to fight moratorium

Times of India

Bangalore: With the Kannada film industry on the warpath, exhibitors and other language industries have decided to take an equally firm stand.

All six exhibitors screening Hindi film Veer-Zaara are said to have received anonymous “death threats’’ on Monday. But Cauvery theatre owner N. Prakash told The Times of India over phone from Mumbai: “I am continuing with the film screening. I have the Supreme Court on my side.’’

Exhibitor and lawyer K.V. Dhananjay, said to be the force behind the defiance of the threeweek moratorium, said: “I have received threats. But I am fighting for the truth. I have always fought against the moratorium because it is fundamentally unjust and injurious. I will continue to do so.’’

More non-Kannada exhibitors are said to be joining the fight. Sources said Akshay Kumar-Kareena Kapoor’s comedy Hulchul, scheduled to be released nationwide on Friday, is likely to be screened in some theatres in Bangalore too.
Efforts are also on to persuade Aitraaz producer Subhash Ghai to release his 12-day-old movie in Bangalore. Besides this, 12-dayold Tamil movie Manmathan may be released this Friday.

Meet today: The joint action committee on Karnataka formed by the other state industries will meet on Tuesday to draw up a counter-plan. Committee member Suresh Babu said over phone from Hyderabad: “Let the Kannada industry shut down. The Supreme court has given us the right to release our films there and the law of the land is bigger than any chamber’s rules. We will not submit to such economic blackmail.’’