'Saavariyaa.com'- a film on internet marraiges- in the making

Panaji, Nov 7 (UNI) A two-hour film in Marathi and Hindi titled 'Saavariyaa.com', featuring emerging trend of internet marriages among Indians, is in the making.

Disclosing this to media persons here yesterday, its director Rajendra Talak, who has won several awards for his Konkani and Marathi films, said that the bilingual film will be shot both in Goa and London locales from early next year.

''These days, the youth are more confused lot and they should decide whether internet marriages are good or bad for them. In fact, we should encourage such marriages,'' Mr Talak said.

The film, with Rs 19 lakh budget, will be completed within a month if everything goes well, he said.

He, however, hastened to add that he did not seek the assistance of the Goa Government for making the film as he had burnt the fingers by doing so for his three award winning films since the year 2004.

''I have so far received a mere Rs 60 lakh from the Government, as against my claim of Rs 1.35 crore spent on the three films, even as I am moving from pillar to post to get the arrears under the Government scheme,'' Mr Talak said.

The scheme, he said, was introduced with a good purpose to encourage making of award winning films in Konkani and Marathi in Goa.

He blamed bureaucratic hurdles for the inordinate delay but admitted that none had so far asked him for ''commissions'' for clearing the arrears.

Mr Talak has urged Chief Minister Digambar Kamat to fix a deadline for sanctioning the assistance under the scheme so that there will not be any such ''hurdles, headaches and sad experiences as mine.'' A determined Talak has also announced his decision not to produce any films in ''Konkani'' so that others came forward to make them.

He, at the same time, regretted lack of enthusiasm and committment among Goan artistes in making Konkani/Marathi cinema in Goa for various reasons as cinema production involved ''hard, dedicated and protracted work which none prefer in the state.'' It may be recalled that Mr Talak has won laurels for his Konkani telefilm 'Shitu', another national award winning Konkani film 'Aleesha' and bilingual film 'Antarnad' in Konkani and 'Savelee' in Marathi.

'Aleesha' was screened in the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in 2004 when the festival was held for the first time in Goa, while ''Antarnad'' was screened in the Festival last year.

UNI