South Indian films technically superior: Nirmala Sitharaman

New Delhi, Sep 10: South Indian films are technically "far superior" than most of the movies being made in north, Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said today.

"I am not a film buff but I can tell you with bit of a risk that the technical quality of the south Indian films are far superior to many other films I have seen in the north, she said here at a Ficci function - Global Skills Summit 2015. She said it requires a lot of technical knowledge and diverse skills to produce an entertaining film.

"You need people with all those different skills (in film industry) and it is not at all easy," she added.

Referring to famous film actor Kamal Hassan, who is also chairman of Media & Entertainment Skills Council (MESC), she said, "I am glad to see that you have somebody here who himself is skills personified, who acquired skills and excelled in his own field."

Recently, 'Baahubali', a South Indian movie made waves for its special effects and was compared to the likes of Hollywood chart busters '300'.

The minister said the south Indian film industry does intense work and takes risks "but that requires a lot of grilling with people".

"It is that kind of thing which is required in very industry be it manufacturing or IT every where. It is that last minute finish and acquiring of that value addition to the qualification you need which makes you a different employee from another," she added.

Further, Sitharaman said the government is taking several steps to boost skill development. She said that World Economic Forum has brought out a Human Capital Index ranking and it speaks of how countries utilise their human capital and in that of total 124 countries India ranked at 100.

This ranking is "not at all something which we can feel proud about".

PTI