New Wave Cinema must find its own market to revive and survive: SHYAM BENEGAL !

New Wave Cinema must find its own market to revive and survive: SHYAM BENEGAL !

Noted Filmmaker Shyam Benegal has asked the film fraternity to ponder deeply over how to market New Wave Cinema, which is on the decline in India. Interacting with the media persons here on the sidelines of 43rd International Film Festival of India (IFFI-2012), he said, smaller films can move to Television but that does not offer market and that explains the continued decline of art films. Benegal said that Cinema is not like any other art like music or painting, but it is a full-fledged industry because of involvement of money. Moreover, in the beginning of 90s, with the economic liberalization, the era of multiplexes came into being and today big corporates have started investing money in the films like any other commercial venture and driving away the individual entrepreneurs. He said, the big businesses not only produce films, but they also distribute and exhibit the films, which the independent and small filmmakers are not capable of doing. Referring to the huge market of NRI’s in foreign countries for the Bollywood movies, Benegal said, the film promotion and the big money involved in it has become another problem area for good cinema. He, however lauded the initiative of the Maharashtra Government which has made it mandatory to show one Marathi film in the multiplexes and said that other states can take a cue from this to promote the regional cinema, as the audience is already there. He also praised the quality cinema being made in Marathi Language.

Expressing happiness that Goa has been established as a permanent venue for IFFI, he said what is interesting about IFFI is that you can watch world cinema at one place and it gives you opportunity not only to watch world cinema but our own films made in various languages. He said, film festivals are meant to celebrate Cinema as an art. On 100 years of Indian Cinema, Benegal said, India became largest film making country in the first 75 years and continues to be so and like any other industry, Cinema is also becoming ambitious in India.