MUMBAI: As if politics wasn’t entertainment enough. After a slump in the real estate sector, Maharashtra politicians are now turning to the entertainment industry as a reliable medium of investment. Several politicians are either producing Marathi films and television soap operas or they have set up recording studios and are financing films.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) president Raj Thackeray’s cousin Jitendra and the party’s film wing chief Amey Khoplar have jointly produced a Marathi film ‘Lai Bhari’. It is expected to be released in July. They had earlier produced a TV serial ‘Aambat Goad’, which was aired on the channel Star Pravah.
Shiv Sena legislator from Jogeshwari, Mumbai, Ravindra Waykar had produced a Marathi film ‘Dham Dhum’ in October 2013. The film did good business and gave Waykar a new identity as a film producer.
Jitendra Thackeray and Waykar are mainly associated with real estate business. Their attraction towards entertainment industry is significant in the wake of a slowdown in the real estate sector. The Marathi entertainment industry is a good bet because it needs low investment but gives high as well as quick returns.
A politician, who did not want to be named, blamed Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan’s policies for the slowdown in the real estate. “The Urban Development Department under Chavan’s control does not clear building proposals quickly. As a result, many housing projects are stuck. It has affected the profit margins as well,” he said.
An MNS worker Sanad Mane, who had produced ‘Bajiprabhu Deshpande’, a biopic of the great warrior in Chhatrapati Shivaji’s army, admitted that the profit margin is bigger in the Marathi entertainment industry. “A Marathi film gets ready for release in a moderate budget of `2.5-3 crore. The producers complete shooting in 45 to 60 days. On an average, a film collects `12-14 crore. There is no other legitimate business which gives such quick and high returns in a short period,” he pointed out.
Politicians also use their clout to get big concessions on the rent of shooting spots. They hardly face any difficulty in getting the requisite permissions from the government for shooting. “The politicians’ influence over the government machinery helps them to cut down the production cost by at least 30 per cent,” a source said. Take the case of ‘Lai Bhari’. Jitendra managed to sign superstar Salman Khan and actor Riteish Deshmukh for a remuneration lower than their regular fees. He could do it because his cousin Raj has cordial relations with the actors.
The Maharashtra government’s policy to promote Marathi films has also encouraged the politicians to produce films. The government rebates 50 per cent of the entertainment tax to the producer of a Marathi film as a grant for his next film. It is mandatory to screen a Marathi film in all multiplexes for at least 122 days in a year. This ensures that even if the film doesn’t do well at the box office, the producer does not suffer a huge loss.
Khopkar, whose father is associated with real estate, claimed that quick returns were not the only reason behind producing the film. “I have chosen this business to prove my mettle. Critics always say that Marathi films are not hits at the box office. I wanted to prove them wrong by producing a good-quality film which can set new records at box office,” he said.