Reel project, real impact

BENGALURU: Environmentalists and urban planners in the city are an upset lot these days. A recent announcement about film city to be established on 150 acres of land at Hesaraghatta has garnered a lot of criticism. According to environmentalists and urban planners, the project will not just hamper the wetland but also needs better planning for a township like this. 

This is not the first time the government has proposed a film city in Hesaraghatta wetland. It was first proposed in the ’80s by then Karnataka chief minister, the late Ramakrishna Hegde. But four decades on, the proposal has still not taken off for various reasons. Considering that Bengaluru does not have many rivers close by, it becomes even more crucial to save these wetlands, says Bharghavi Rao, a trustee of Environment Support Group. “Any kind of wetland is a form of water body. In the past, these were sources of water bodies in cities, which have been buried to bring up bus stands, housing colonies, stadia etc,” says Rao.

But the proposed project is leaving people concerned for reasons that go beyond its environmental impact. Ravichandar V, an urban expert, says one must look for dry land, and not lowland or wetland, for construction. “Moreover, when you plan a mega project like this, it has to be well integrated. How well will the connectivity be? It does not make sense if the film city is in Hesaraghatta and 90 per cent of the work force comes from Bannerghatta Road with no proper transportation facilities available,” says Ravichandar.

He continues, “The next point is social infrastructure. When a township is constructed, three things that should be taken care of is living, working and leisure. If workers stay closer to film city, there should be infrastructure like school, hospitals and parks  available. Earlier when places like ITI, BEL, HMP were set up, these things were taken care of.” 

While some members of Sandalwood feel the project might help with a studio facility, they reiterate that it shouldn’t be at the cost of the environment. “It does not matter how good our real locations are. It’s always good to have a studio with better facilities, where things like lighting and sound are under our control while filmmaking,” says filmmaker and producer Rajendra Singh Babu. According to him, there are many reasons why a city like Bengaluru is conducive for a film city. “Apart from environmental reasons, the other aspect is that filmmaking is a creative job. The city is filled with traffic and crowds, which might not be suitable. But it’s great for technical offices like sound mixing and computer gfx,” he says.