HYDERABAD: The state government has conceded the demand of the film industry for construction of mini-multiplex theatres outside Hyderabad.
The cabinet sub-committee on development of film industry in the state, which met at the Secretariat for the first time on Thursday, also agreed to accord all the permissions needed for film shootings through a single window.
Prominent persons from film industry Dasari Narayana Rao, D Suresh Babu, Telangana Film Chamber of Commerce president Rammohan Rao, Tammareddy Bharadwaja, Shyamprasad Reddy, KS Rama Rao, MAA president Rajendra Prasad, N Sankar, Vandemataram Srinivas, Kalyan, R Narayana Murthy, Sana Yadi Reddy, Paruchuri Venkateswara Rao and others were present at the meeting.
Speaking to reporters later, cinematography minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav said people would have more reach to films in small towns with the construction of mini-multiplexes with a seating capacity of 200 to 300.
Other Decisions
Yadav said presentation of Nandi Awards had been pending since 2013 and they would consult with the officials of AP to jointly present the awards for the period AP remained united. He said the Telangana government would change the name of Nandi awards and present the awards from 2014 onwards. All the pending awards would be given away on Ugadi, he said.
The minister said all the theatres in the state would be given permission to screen five shows daily, one show exclusively for low-budget movies. The government agreed, in principle, to construct houses for around 10,000 film workers at Chitranagari in the city.
Selling of movie tickets online would be made compulsory so that the government would get tax completely, Srinivas Yadav said.
The meeting decided to encourage low-budget and message-oriented movies in a big way.
It was also decided to identify suitable land for the proposed Film and TV Institute on the lines of the one functioning in Pune.
The feasibility of constructing a film studio was also discussed. “Those who come to Hyderabad should directly go to the film studio from the airport and go back with their production (film) to the airport is the concept,” an official release issued after the meeting said. However, Srinivas Yadav, while speaking to media later, said that as it was the first meeting and they did not discuss film studio construction much.