Lack of effort to develop audiences for meaningful cinema: Adoor

Panaji, Nov 30 (UNI) Celebrated Malyalam filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan today lamented that there had been a lack of effort to nurture and develop audiences for meaningful cinema.

Speaking at the Open Forum on 'Distribution and Marketing of Meaningful Cinema' as part of the ongoing IFFI here, Mr Gopalakrishanan said Doordarshan had stopped the telecast of award winning Indian Panorama films in the afternoon slots on Sundays while the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) was no longer involved in promoting the movies.

The problems have been compounded by the fact that writers on cinema are admirers of the 'run-of-the mill' cinema and are involved in propaganda against the non-mainstream movies. He felt that the 'run of the mill' kind of commercial films were unpractical.

The noted filmmaker pointed out that there was a wrong notion that non-mainstream cinema did not have an audience. ''The problem is that we are unable to reach our audiences because of lack of infrastructure. Distributors have their own preferences in taking up movies and most of the time, they feel that mainstream commercial films are the real cinema.'' Former Director of Directorate of Film Festivals (DFF) Malati Sahay said even though film festivals were being held across the country in recent years, it was giving meaningful cinema in different languages a platform for screening. However, limited audiences had access to these films.

Saurin Desai from Palador Pictures Pvt Ltd said the company aimed to position itself as one-stop shop for quality content. It had so far acquired 900 labels of foreign films which were being taken to the Indian audiences through an integrated distribution model which covered exclusive DVD label, theatrical release and video on demand.

A dedicated television channel to cater to meaningful cinema was being planned and would go on air from April next year, he informed.

Similarly, an acquired library of Indian films would be taken to international audiences in a similar manner.

He said the company was also looking at productions and co-productions.

Kannada filmmaker Ramdas Naidu said an organisation called 'Chitra Samuha' had been formed to promote good films in rural Karnataka.

''We focus on local distribution. As many as 50 per cent of offbeat films are not released because of lack of distributors.

Our aim is to ensure that these movies reach the people,'' he said and suggested that Doordarshan should restore the telecast of award winning regional films and take steps to establish film clubs at every taluka place.

UNI