Tamil film industry to take out procession on April 4

Members of the Tamil film industry will take out a procession to submit a petition to Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on April 4 at the Secretariat in Chennai.

Senior actors Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth would be invited. Speaking at a press meet, actor Vishal, president, Tamil Film Producers Council, said the strike, which had got extended for 30 days, would continue till all their demands were met: flexibility in ticket prices, computerisation and centralisation of tickets throughout Tamil Nadu and the formation of a Tamil Nadu Film Development Corporation.

Mr. Vishal, who appeared to be shifting the focus of the ‘strike’ as a response to lack of transparency from the side of distributors and exhibitors, said, “We want to revamp the industry. When we restart our work, the industry should be regulated. We also want the audience to be back in the theatres. So we want flexibility in ticket prices and the government must ensure computerisation and transparency of ticketing.”

“We are not going to take the VPF issue to the government. We will take it up internally,” he added. He said the film industry expected the government to intervene in the issue of transparency. “We have appealed to the exhibitors to ensure that there is transparency. We also want the State government to resolve this issue. This is necessary for the revamp of the industry,” he said.

Sources in the producers’ council said that this was an effort to remove the strangle- hold of a few stakeholders, who seem to control the various parts of the film industry. “The problem today is that some exhibitors and distributors have also become financiers. They have started deciding who should produce the movie and for how much it should be sold. The industry needs to shake off these people,” said a producer.

Reiterating that a spectacle like this is necessary for the revamp of the industry, R.K. Selvamani, president, Federation of Film Employees of South India, said, “We wish to tell the government that we are ready to pay taxes, but first regulate us. The producers should pay everyone by cheques. We are unable to understand the full extent of expenditure and revenue because accounts are opaque."