(From our issue dated 30th July, 1994)

JANTA KI ADALAT

B.M.B. Pictures’ Janta Ki Adalat is one more story of justice being meted out by the public. An evil minister perpetrates atrocities on a village and even murders a girl, framing her lover for the murder. How the beloved escapes from jail and seeks revenge on the minister, with the help of the entire village and a police officer, forms the crux of the drama. There is not much novelty by way of content. The dramatic scenes are subdued. Dialogues are commonplace.

Mithun Chakraborty does reasonably well. Madhoo is lively. Gautami is okay as the police inspector. Sadashiv Amra­purkar plays the minister quite well. Lax­mikant Berde and Asrani are wasted. In fact, their comedy track looks contrived. Aloknath, Sulbha Arya, Shiva and Ravi lend the required support.

Direction is mediocre. Bappi Lahiri’s music score is the best thing in the film. All the five songs have appealing tunes, the best being ‘Tere har sawaal ka jawab ban jaaoongi’ and ‘Dil ki haalat’. Song picturisations are rich. Action is good. Production values are of standard. Came­rawork is eye-pleasing. Other technical values are alright.

On the whole, a good dose of action and popular music make Janta Ki Ada­lat a film for ‘B’ and ‘C’ class centres.

Released on 29-7-’94 at Alankar and 31 other cinemas of Bombay thru Ethnic Enterprises. Publicity: good. Opening: fair. …….Also released all over. Opening was very good in U.P. and C.P. Berar.

LATEST POSITION

It was KRANTIVEER week all over. Not only did the film command a fantastic initial, it also maintained very well throughout the week.

Krantiveer has done excellent and proves class A. In Maharashtra, it is AA; 1st week Bombay 21,19,831 (99.75%) from 15 cinemas (13 on F.H.); Ahme­dabad 5,38,706 from 6 cinemas, Surat 1,41,933 (100%) from 2 cinemas (2 cine­mas unrecd.), Baroda 2,33,457 (88.51%) from 2 cinemas, Rajkot 83,304 from 2 cinemas (1 in matinee, 1 on F.H.); Pune 5,87,539 from 7 cinemas (1 in matinee), Malegaon share over 90,000 from 2 cine­mas, Solapur 61,870 (100%, excellent at 1 more cinema); Delhi 23,74,541 (86.24%) from 12 cinemas (2 on. F.H.); Lucknow 2,61,823 from 2 cinemas, Kanpur 2,95,316 from 3 cinemas, Agra 1,17,967, Allahabad 1,17,600, Meerut 1,25,211, Bareilly 70,159, Aligarh 1,00,962, Gorakhpur 1,26,000 (92.31%), theatre re­cord, Dehradun 86,267; Amritsar 45,315; Calcutta 17,29,947 (94.49%) from 22 cinemas; Nagpur 3,99,154 from 4 cine­mas, Jabalpur 1,31,024, Amravati 1,57,891 from 2 cinemas, Akola 83,000, Raipur 1,64,224 (78.73%) from 2 cinemas, Bhilai 1,01,269, theatre record, Dhule 1,75,669 from 2 cinemas, Jalgaon 87,374, theatre record, Chandrapur 91,659; In­dore 2,16,670 from 2 cinemas, theatre record at both the cinemas (3 on F.H.), Bhopal 2,41,407 from 3 cinemas, Ujjain 1,70,000 from 2 cinemas; Jaipur 7,37,619 from 4 cinemas, Alwar (29 shows) 1,56,652, city record; Hyderabad 16,05,351 from 9 cinemas, share 8,50,000; Banga­lore share 2,70,000.

…..

DO YOU KNOW?

* KRANTIVEER has created a thea­tre record by drawing all shows full (1,86,378/-) in 1st week at Hanjer, Jogeshwari, Bombay.

* KRANTIVEER has created a new  record by drawing all shows full in advance in 1st week at Milap, Kan­divli, Bombay. Collection: 1,70,002/-.

* KRANTIVEER has created a theatre record by collecting 1,26,000/- (against a capacity of 1,36,489/-, 92.31%) in 1st week at Vijay, Gorakhpur.

* KRANTIVEER has created a thea­tre record by collecting 96,417/- in 1 week at Shyam, Amravati.

* KRANTIVEER has created a Khan­desh record by netting 1,02,541/- (all full) in 1st week at Jyoti Chitra Man­dir, Dhule, in spite of heavy rains.

* KRANTIVEER has created a thea­tre record by collecting 1,01,269/- in 1st week at Venkateswara, Bhilai.

* KRANTIVEER has created a thea­tre record by collecting 87,374/- in 1st week at Chitra, Jalgaon.

* KRANTIVEER has created a thea­tre record by collecting 1,13,903/- in 1st week at Sangeeta, Indore. It has also created a theatre record by coll­ecting 1,02,767/- at Yeshwant, Indore.

* KRANTIVEER has created a record by collecting 1,56,652/- (gross) in 1st week (29 shows) at Ashoka, Alwar.

MIX MASALA

BIG SCREEN APPEAL

The artistes and technicians of Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! have appealed to the cinegoers to see the film in cinemas only. They have informed them that its video cassettes would not be out simultaneously and those that surface clandestinely would be illegal.

YOU ASKED IT

Why have prices of films shot up these days?

– Because films like JURASSIC PARK, MOHRA and KRANTIVEER have done fantastic business, bringing in a new kind of confidence in the trade.

Will the tax-free status in most of the states make 1942 A Love Story an earn­ing proposition?

– Looking to the high price, it doesn’t seem likely that it will even cover its cost despite tax exemption. This is because the masses and lower class audience have not come to the cinemas despite tax-free admission rates. The film is essentially appealing only to class audience.

What does the success of Krantiveer prove?

– That for a hit, you don’t need a star. And to become a star, one needs a hit.

CINEMA CLOSED

Shri Krishna Talkies, Jabalpur closed down on 27th July on account of expiry of the lease agreement of 49 years.

LONDON COURT ORDERS SHOW ORGANISERS
TO PAY DAMAGES TO SAAWAN KUMAR

The High Court of Justice, Chancery Division, London on 7th July ordered damages to be paid to Saawan Kumar by show organisers Nilesh Patel and Alan Corder.

Saawan Kumar had filed a suit against the aforesaid show organisers for unau­thorised use of photographs of his Chaand Kaa Tukdaa (Sridevi and Anupam Kher) in their publicity of the show held in London some months back.

If this ruling can be quoted as a precedent, it would be imperative for all show organisers and artistes participating in shows, to henceforth seek permission from producers for using photographs from their (producers’) films.

SANJAY GUPTA APOLOGISES TO FMC

The FMC, at its meeting held on 25th July, took strong objection to certain statements made by director Sanjay Gupta in an interview published recently in a film glossy. There was a move to ask produ­cers to refrain from signing him. Sanjay Gupta, however, met the FMC executive committee on 28th and apologised for the objectionable words (swear words) utter­ ed by him. He has also written an apology letter to the FMC.

‘BETI HUYEE….’ TAX-FREE IN RAJASTHAN

Mohan Singh Rathore’s Beti Huyee Paraee Re (Rajasthani) has been granted tax-exemption in Rajasthan. Rakesh Nahata and Shyamsunder Jalani’s Baba Ramdev (Rajasthani) was seen by the tax-exemption committee in Jaipur on 29th July. Both the films are due for release next week.

ENT. TAX RAID ON CINEMA

The deputy commissioner of entertainment tax, Lucknow, on 17th July raided Vishal Cinema, Laksar (district Hard­war). A case has been registered against the cinema.

RAIDED CINEMA REOPENS

Ashok cinema, Hardwar, which was raided by the commissioner of entertainment tax on 25th July and ordered to be closed, reopened on 27th. The cinema had to pay a penalty of Rs. 14,161 for permitting more persons in the auditorium than the tickets issued.

VINOD SHARMA ELECTED RAPA PRESIDENT

Vinod Sharma was elected president of RAPA for 1994-95 at its annual general meeting held recently in Bombay. Sari­ta Sethi was elected vice president, Brij Mittle, hon. secretary, and Purush Bao­kar, hon. treasurer. Surya Roy was elected hon. jt. secretary. Others elected on the executive committee were K.N. Goel, Vijay Bahl, Swadesh Chaddha, Keith Ste­venson, L.N. Baijal, Suren Chawla and M.G. Radhakrishnan Pillai.

BABUBHAI DIXIT DEAD

Producer Babubhai Dixit died on 23rd July at his residence at Santacruz, Bom­bay. He had been suffering from jaundice. He was 73 and is survived by his wife, two sons, a daughter and grandchildren.

Babubhai had produced the Bhojpuri film, Ghar Girhasti. He had also worked as Asha Bhosle’s secretary years back.

KANNADA FILM ACTOR DEAD

Upcoming Kannada film actor Sunil was killed, and actress Malashri sustained severe head injuries when the car in which they were travelling collided with a truck near a village near Bangalore on 24th July. The two were on their way to Bangalore.

‘1942’ TAX-FREE IN M.P. TOO

1942 A Love Story has been granted exemption from payment of entertainment tax in Madhya Pradesh for a period of one year from 27th July.

BOMBAY BAZAAR

Sultan Ahmed’s Jai Vikraanta, which was to have been released in Bombay by U.A. Thadani, is changing hands.

Sajid Nadiadwala’s Jeet has been acquired for Bombay by I.R.K., re­portedly at a very good price.

Garma-Garam

** Seeing the 2-hour rushes of Indra Kumar and Ashok Thakeria’s Raja this week was a superb entertaining experience. The film, after completion, should turn out to be a comp­lete entertainer. It has all the mak­ings of a hit. For those who feel, Madhuri Dixit is on her way out, Raja (besides Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!) is the answer. She is truly fantastic in a role that gives her an opportunity to expose all shades of her talent. Sanjay Kapoor is good. He impresses in the scene of revolt. Par­esh Rawal’s is an award-winning performance. Just as director Indra Kumar’s is a reward-winning ende­avour.

** Nana Patekar has become hot pro­perty after Krantiveer. Fears that he ‘runs’ only in Maharashtra have been proved wrong now. Obviously then, producers are queuing up to sign Nana. That doesn’t mean, Nana has said “Haan, haan”. All the same, five to six producers are al­ready finalising stories with Nana in mind. Writer K.K. Singh seems to be their first choice for dialogues.

** Mehul Kumar, K.K. Singh and Din­esh Gandhi have completed their hat-trick of hits with Krantiveer. The trio first came together in Mar­te Dam Tak. Their second was Tir­angaa.

** It appears that Rajiv Rai is planning to add the female version of the ‘Mast mast’ song in Mohra soon.

** ‘Chura ke dil mera’ song of Venus’ Tu Khiladi Main Anari is stealing all hearts. The song is a super-hit number.

** The Barjatyas will be releasing just one print of Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! in Bombay (Liberty). In the circuit, they’ll be releasing 8 prints. In Delhi, Calcutta and Nagpur, they’ll release 2 prints each. A total of 30 prints only will be released in the first week. The film will not be released in East Punjab, Andhra and Tamilnad on 5th August. Similarly, its video cassettes will not be out simultaneously. However, the film will be released in cinemas in the U.K. on 5th itself.

** While the running time of HAHK..! is 3 hours and 27 minutes, two prints of a running time of 3 hours and 34 minutes will be released. The two cinemas which will screen this un­abridged version are yet to be decided.

** There were trial shows of Shekhar Kapur’s internationally acclaimed film, The Bandit Queen, this week in Bombay. And the reports are una­nimous. People have loved the film for its uninhibited depiction of stark reality, focussing on the life, trials and tribulations of the dacoit queen, Phoolan Devi. Swear-words have been used unabashedly, and those who’ve seen the film feel, censors should make an exception and pass them without cuts, so that the film can make the desired impact.

** The officers of all the regional offi­ces of the CBFC have reportedly been summoned to Delhi. Are they going to be asked for explanations for having passed “objectionable” songs and scenes in films? There’s a whisper to that effect.

** Maybe, it is just a lapse but a glaring one at that. A preview theatre like Dimple does not have slippers out­side its two toilets (gents and ladies). And the pee-basin in the gents toilet has a broken pipe so that all that one brings out, comes back to him right at his feet. Don’t say “yuck”. Leave that for the actual wet experience.

3-E
Education-Entertainment-Enlightenment

Ball In Exhibitors’ Court

There is no denying the fact that people have started com­ing to cinemas again. The initials commanded by Mohra and Krantiveer in recent times have shown that there is an audi­ence for cinemas. What they want are good fares and well-maintained cinema houses. Exhibitors cannot blame dwind­ling business for lack of upkeep and maintenance. They must pull up their socks and make their houses places where cine­goers would like to spend three hours.

A Sound Answer

For those disillusioned by the Dolby sound in 1942 A Love Story, director Sanjay Gupta has an answer. He is making Ram Shastra in Dolby sound system and he is sure, he will not make the mistake made by 1942 people. For one, while in 1942, the dubbing was not in Dolby sound, in Ram Shastra, the entire dubbing will be done in Dolby sound. The effects would also be recorded in Dolby stereophonic sound unlike in 1942. Says Sanjay Gupta, “In 1942, it was only the mixing that was done in Dolby sound. And even that was not in pro­per density.”

Sunil Shetty ‘Cleared’

Nitin Mavani’s Surakshaa was being directed by Anand Singh (Mama) but the latter’s busy schedule as producer (of Himmat) prompted him to opt out as director. S.J. Talukdaar, the writer of Surakshaa, and Nitin’s brother, Raju Mavani, have now taken over as joint directors of the film. Inciden­tally, the FMC has cleared Sunil Shetty for the film after levy­ing a penalty of Rs. 5,000 on Nitin Mavani who shot with Sunil without the FMC’s clearance.

Tit For Tat?

Shah Rukh Khan to Govinda: “You are a damn good actor, and I admire your versatility. If there’s any actor, after Johny Lever, whom I admire, it is you.”

Govinda to Shah Rukh: “I admire your range too. You are next only to Kanhaiyalal. Even he could fit in a positive role as well as he could, in a negative role, and the same is with you. If I admire anyone after Kanhaiyalal, it is only you.” The above is no filmi scene. The exchange of dialogues took place at Mehboob Studios a few days back when the two stars were shooting for two different films.

(From our issue dated 23rd July, 1994)

KRANTIVEER

Mehul Movies Pvt. Ltd.’s Krantiveer (UA) is the story of the efforts of a carefree man of the street and a lady-journa­list to combat communal violence and awaken people to rise above communal differences. The journalist is always ready to fight for the cause of a common man, while the man couldn’t care less even though he is fully aware of what’s happening. Circumstances and the jour­nalist’s constant endeavour to discipline him bring out the revolutionary in him and then, there’s no stopping him.

Although the story is not new, it has a very lively and different character in its hero who first mocks at people with his sarcastic dialogues and then erupts like a volcano when instigated beyond limit. It is this character, etched out by the writer, and its excellent portrayal by the hero that make the film a differently enjoyable fare.

There is some romance too, but it only serves to add some glamour. The drama becomes dull at places where Nana is absent.

The film has three heroes – Nana Patekar, writer K.K. Singh and Mehul Kumar. K.K. Singh has laboured a lot in scripting the drama and although the drama has a sermonising effect at some places, the overall impact is good and even stun­ning at many places. Dialogues are brilli­ant, hard-hitting and topical, and a major highlight. Another highlight is hero Nana Patekar’s performance. Cent percent marks to Nana for getting into the skin of the character and delivering a performance that is so wonderful that the audience cannot help falling in love with him. He makes one laugh, cry, think – and, of course, admire him. Director Mehul Kumar has handled the subject well. His narration is effective. Special mention must be made of the mob scenes that have been excellently shot.

Dimple Kapadia does a fine job as the journalist. Atul Agnihotri is quite good. Mamta Kulkarni has no scope except to add sex appeal and she does so reasonably well. Danny Denzongpa leaves an impact and is natural to the core. Paresh Rawal is extraordinary and plays the good-hearted man with a rare sensitiveness. Ishrat Ali is able. Farida Jalal is effective. Tinnu Anand, Mushtaq Khan, Bindu, Vikas Anand, Shafi Inamdar, Mahesh Anand, Ram Mohan, Girish Malik, Sujit Kumar and the others lend adequate support.

A couple of songs are quite good but there’s not a single hit number. Photo­graphy and other technical values are of standard. Action scenes are quite thrill­ing.

On the whole, Krantiveer has the ingredients to emerge a big winner and the potential to prove class ‘A’. Business in Maharashtra will be the best.

Released on 22-7-’94 at Dreamland and 26 other cinemas of Bombay thru B.R.A. Corporation. Publicity & open­ing: excellent. Also released all over. Opening was very impressive everywhere.

DO YOU KNOW?

* B. Nagi Reddy’s BHAIRAVDWEEP is doing roaring business in Tamil too, in which it has been dubbed from Telugu. It was released with 30 prints in Tamil Nadu last week and it fared exceptionally well despite five new Tamil releases.

* 1942 A LOVE STORY has created a theatre record by collecting 1,56,940/- in 1st week at Smruti, Nagpur. It was screened at tax-free rates from fifth day onwards.

* 1942 A LOVE STORY has created a record by collecting 84,500/- (against a capacity of 89,000/-) in 1st week at Asha, Imphal (Assam).

* MOHRA has created new records by yielding the following shares in 3 weeks: Rajkot 4,05,000/-, Jaihind, Morbi 2,44,000/-, Modern, Bhuj 1,90,000/-.

* MOHRA has created a city record by collecting 99,730/- in 3rd week at Seema, Aligarh. 3 weeks’ total: 3,62,475/-, city record.

* MOHRA has created a city record by collecting 10,722/- on the opening day at Aarti, Wardha.

* MOHRA has created a city record by collecting 84,215/- in 3rd week at Prabhat, Raipur.

* MOHRA has created a city record by collecting 2,14,014/- (gross) in 1st week and another city record by coll­ecting 1,62,025/- (gross) in 2nd week at Ajanta, Ajmer.

* SAAJAN KA GHAR has yielded a fantastic distributor’s share of 93,000/- in 4 weeks from Balaghat (C.P. Berar), thereby surpassing the shares of such hits as AANKHEN (50,000/-), LAADLA (62,000/-) and ANARI (85,000/-). Its week-wise collections are: 1st 53,767/-, 2nd 47,762/-, 3rd 46,642/-, and 4th (6 days) 22,525/- (in spite of heavy rains). Total: 1,70,696/-.

* JURASSIC PARK (Hindi), which is celebrating 100 days today (23rd July), has created a record of sorts by having been screened at the following main cinemas of Bombay: Maratha Mandir, Liberty, Naaz, Dreamland, Alankar (3 weeks) and Minerva (op­ened this week).

* PHOOL AUR KAANTE (r.r.) has created a city record by collecting 12,050/- in 1st week at Ramavtar Talkies, Nagar (district Bharatpur), in spite of heavy rains.

* TIRANGAA (tax-free) has grossed the highest collection (67,558/-) ever grossed by a repeat-run film in a week’s run at Naveen, Mirzapur (U.P.).

* BEERA BEGO AAYEEJE RE (R.) has created a city record for Rajasthani films by collecting 71,128/- in 1st week (28 shows) at Plaza, Ajmer.

* EKA PEKSHA EK (M., TF, r.r.) has created a theatre record by collecting 53,468/- in 2nd week at Bharatmata, Bombay. Police had to be called in to control the crowds on Ashadhi Eka­dashi day. Eight prints are engaged in 3rd week, a record.

YOU ASKED IT

How much business is Mohra expected to do?

– Over 2 crore per major territory.

Pursuant to the meeting of the ministers of various states, in Delhi recently, is there a move to reduce entertainment tax?

– The Madhya Pradesh government is inclined towards reducing entertainment tax. This was also made clear at the function held this week in Bombay by the industry to felicitate the Madhya Pradesh cultural affairs minister.

How is the India video market after the industry’s decision to release video cassettes two weeks after the theatrical release?

– Video distributors are not striking deals. They are waiting and watching.

SNAPSHOTS

SKY-HIGH PRICES

Where are prices going? Producer Gordhanbhai, who has reportedly signed Indra Kumar to direct a film for him, at a phenomenal price, is quoting 1.25 crore as his film’s ratio. It stars Aamir Khan and Ajay Devgan. Ketan Desai has priced his untitled film, to be directed by David Dhawan, at 1 khokha. Likewise, Boney Kapoor is asking for 1 for his Prem which will be brother Sanjay Kapoor’s first release.

*       *       *

HOT SUB-TERRITORIES

The days of the tukdaa are here. It is one or the other tukdaa (sub-territory) in every circuit that is hot and because of which prices of films are zooming up. In Bombay, it is Gujarat and Saurashtra that are very hot. It is Bihar in the Eastern cir­cuit, and Rajasthan in the C.P.C.I. circuit. Nizam is quite hot in the South. East Punjab itself is hot for action-oriented films. So, it is the age of tukdaas. Is that why Chaand Kaa Tukdaa has suddenly become hot among distributors?

*       *       *

CONTENT & FORM

Mukul Anand may be the first director who has not attended story-sittings and music-sittings of his film, Trimurti. That is handled by producer Subhash Ghai. Mukul, who is frank to admit that his films have lacked in content, says, “In Trimur­ti, I execute the script that comes to me. I am only giving form to Subhash-ji’s con­tent.”

*       *       *

ACTION DRAMA

There was an action drama at Bom­bay’s Naaz building earlier this week. A Gujarat distributor (who has acquired Vijaypath for Gujarat) beat up a film broker black and blue. Reason: the broker took an offer of another Gujarat distributor to producer Pravin Shah for Vijaypath, in spite of being fully aware that the film had already been sold for Gujarat. According to the Gujarat distributor, the broker’s move would result in him hav­ing to hike his price and hence the dishum dishum.

*       *       *

CLASSMATES

Although this signifies nothing, it would, nevertheless, make for interesting reading. David Dhawan and Vinod Chopra studied in the same batch at the FTII.

*       *       *

HC ADMITS WRIT AGAINST AMRITA

A writ petition filed by the assistant editor of Star & Style, under Article 226 was admitted on July 6 by Justices Mohta and Bahuguna of the Bombay high court. The petition seeks direction for taking Amrita Singh in custody for alleged ass­ault on the assistant editor on 27th April. The judges have directed that Amrita Singh be made party to the petition. Am­eena Naqvi, assisted by Owais Siddiqui, appeared for the petitioners.

VETERAN ACTRESS SARAJUBALA DEAD

Veteran stage and Bengali film actress Sarajubala Devi died at a hospital in Cal­cutta on 22nd July after a brief illness. She was 82 and is survived by two sons and two daughters.

ENT. TAX RAID ON HARDWAR CINEMA

The commissioner of entertainment tax on 17th July raided Ashoka cinema, Hardwar where Mohra was being screened. It was found that more cinegoers than tickets sold were watching the film. A case has been registered against the cine­ma.

FFI CRITICAL OF PAWAR’S REMARKS

The Film Federation of India has taken strong exception to a recent comment made by the Maharashtra chief minister, Sharad Pawar, on the Assembly floor that the Jal­gaon sex scandal was a result of the evil influence of Indian films. FFI president Santosh Singh Jain has called it most sad, unfortunate and enigmatic. He further adds, “Although today, it has become a fashion to blame the film industry for all the evils prevalent in the society, such an irresponsible and sweeping statement coming from a supposed-to-be responsible person like Mr. Pawar is most un­becoming.”

NEW EDITING ROOM

Apollo Arts Film Editing, an editing room, opened on 16th July at 2, Neet & Geet, Plot No. 37, Subway Road (near Milan Cinema), Santacruz (W), Bombay-400 054. Phone: 613-3951. The editing room belongs to producer S.P. Mahendra whose office has also been shifted to the above address.

AMPS GENERAL MEETING

The 33rd annual general meeting of the Association of Motion Pictures Stu­dios (AMPS) is being held today (23rd July) at Citizen Hotel at 11.30 a.m. The meeting will be followed by lunch.

‘SALAAMI’ CHANGES HANDS IN BOMBAY

Salaami, which was being distributed in Bombay by Mheraj Enterprises, will now be distributed by Friends Movies.

MOHAN, RATLAM CLOSED

Mohan Talkies, Ratlam has downed shutters for good.

SHREERAM LAGOO’S SON DEAD

Tanvir, son of Shreeram Lagoo, died in a freak accident on 16th July in Pune. He was returning from Bombay to Pune on 10th July by a train when a stone, thrown by an unknown person on the run­ning train, hit him on the head. His head was relaxed against the open window. He fell unconscious and was rushed to a private hospital in Pune. Tanvir suffered brain haemmorhage and although his condition was stable for the next four days, he succumbed to his injuries on the night of 16th.

‘JURASSIC PARK’ TAX EXEMPTION: GOVT. DEFENDS DECISION

In a reply to a question raised in the Maharashtra State Assembly, revenue minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said that the tax-exemption given to the dubbed Hindi version of Jurassic Park was justified as the film falls under the category of educational films which provide wholesome entertainment and warn against the dan­gers of indiscriminate scientific research.

‘1942’ TAX-FREE IN MAHARASHTRA, GUJARAT

Vinod Chopra’s 1942 A Love Story has been granted tax exemption in Maha­rashtra (100%) and Gujarat (70%). The film was screened at tax-free rates in Maharashtra centres of C.P. Berar from 18th July onwards. In Bombay and Guja­rat, the tax-free rates have been made applicable from the second week (22nd July).

Orders for tax-exemption have reportedly been obtained in Delhi and U.P. But it will be screened at tax-free rates in Delhi-U.P. from 29th July. Tax-exemption order for Madhya Pradesh is expected shortly.

‘DILWALE’ JUBILEE PARTY

Harry Baweja will host a cocktail-dinner party on 24th July (tomorrow) at Hotel Sun-N-Sand to celebrate the silver jubilee of his Dilwale. The film entered 25th week on 22nd July all over. Harry Baweja will also launch two new films the same day.

3-E
Education-Entertainment-Enlightenment

Making A Hit: Very Easy

Harry Baweja who is today known as the director of the hit film, Dilwale, feels, “It is easier to make a hit film than to recover overflow from the distributors.” We don’t need to add our comments to that. If at all, Harry’s distributors can come up with explanations/retorts.

The ‘Dilwale’ Trio

While on Harry Baweja, he will be announcing two films tomorrow at the silver jubilee function of his Dilwale. One will star one hero of Dilwale (Ajay Devgan) and the other, the second hero of Dilwale (Sunil Shetty). Raveena Tandon, the heroine of Dilwale, will play the female lead in at least one of the projects.

Unprecedented Demand, Unprecedented Pettiness

1942 A Love Story has not found appreciation among the masses but demand for its tickets at Bombay’s Metro cinema is unprecedented. On the other hand, tickets are easily available at several other cinemas of Bombay. The producer and Bombay distributors of the film found themselves in a difficult situation this week. While the demand for tickets of Metro continued in the film’s 2nd week, the management sent just about 30% of the tickets asked for by the producer/distributors. Rather than accepting the 30%, they preferred to return them to the management. But not without being irritated at and agitated by the management’s pettiness – and telling them so. According to the manager of Metro, one of the staffers of the cinema had messed up things and sent only 30% of the quota of tickets which were actually kept back for the producer/dis­tributors.

‘1942’: The HMV Story

Realising that it had a super-hit music score in 1942 A Love Story, HMV left no stone unturned to promote it. A special video van, painted with the 1942 A Love Story logo, stormed the interiors of Gujarat, fully armed with a projection system for screening, match-boxes for distribution, cassettes for retailing, fliers as giveaways and posters to be stuck on walls, pillars, posts, etc., for a full month. A unique singing talent contest is being held all over India, based on the songs of the film. A special marketing blitz is also being done through various media. What’s more, members of the sales team held special road shows with a special 16-wheeled cycle having a 1942 A Love Story canopy in the streets of Nagpur.

A set of nine picture postcards having interesting anec­dotes were distributed to the market as giveaways for the consumers. Exclusive 1942 A Love Story match-boxes were distributed free among retailers/consumers.

Too Many Cooks Spoil The Broth?

How many heads have worked on the script of 1942 A Love Story? Well, the story is credited to Kamna Chandra, Shiv Subramanyam and Vidhu Vinod Chopra. The screenplay is by Shiv Subramanyam, Vinod Chopra and Sanjay Bhansali. Besides the above, there were reportedly four script associates viz. Sudhir Mishra, Vikram Chandra, Vikas Mat­hur and Vinay Shukla. Then there were three script consultants: Amit Khanna, Vishwanath Mathur and Bikram Singh (late). Three associate directors – Yogesh, Binod Pradhan and Renu Saluja – and Javed Akhtar were also connected with the script-writing work. And all these writers together ‘produced’ about 500 scenes, of which the 65 best were picturised. And after the best, the rest is history….

Darshan – Of Gods & Stars

Hyderabad’s Film Nagar area at Jubilee Hills, where many leading South stars have their bungalows, is like a Mecca for star-gazers and film-crazy fans. Bus-loads of people arrive there every morning for a glimpse of their favourite stars like Chiranjeevi, Suman, Rajasekhar and many others. Some of these buses carry people who are on a pilgrimage to some temple town and who would like to have a darshan of the matinee idols too. In fact, these fans display banners on the buses, declaring their “mission” and giving details of their address. The banners on the buses scream, “So-and-so fans’ association of so-and-so (address)”. “Chalo Film Nagar” announces another banner.

The Problem Hero

The middle-aged hero who is launching his son as a hero, is himself problem personified for his producers. He doesn’t fulfill his commitments, reports late for shootings (that is, when he reports) and puts producers to heavy losses due to his unprofessional behaviour. To add to the producers’ woes is the hero’s secretary who makes promises only to break them.

(From our issue dated 25th June, 1994)

LATEST POSITION

It was a normal week at most of the places. Heavy rains, however, affected collections at some centres.

Aatish has done fantastic in the first week: Bombay 27,66,455 (92.77%) from 21 cinemas (11 on F.H.); Ahmedabad 6 days 6,68,285 from 7 cinemas, Surat 1,18,000 (100%), Baroda 2,34,335 (88.99%) from 2 cinemas, Rajkot 1,78,311 from 3 cinemas (1 in matinee); Pune 6,15,859 from 6 cinemas, Solapur 61,870 (100%), Nasik 84,190, record, Nasik Road 80,229; Hubli 1,14,039 (93.62%) from 3 cinemas, Belgaum 1,13,150 (86.15%) from 2 cinemas; Delhi 27,35,167 (90.16%) from 13 cinemas; Lucknow 2,12,144 (100%), Meerut 2,10,696 from 2 cinemas, Bareilly 80,727 (85.92%), Dehradun 81,113; Chandigarh 1,40,000; Calcutta 18,51,509 (87.80%) from 24 cinemas; Nagpur 5,51,420 from 6 cinemas, Jabalpur 1,75,105 from 2 cinemas, Amravati 1,56,866 from 2 cinemas, Akola 1,14,603, Raipur 1,32,563 (67.88%) from 2 cinemas, Bhilai 1,40,690 from 2 cinemas, Jalgaon 1,23,223 from 2 cine­mas, Yavatmal (30 shows) 94,769 (gross), Bilaspur 1,11,442; Indore 2,38,073 from 3 cinemas (4 cinemas on F.H.), Bhopal 2,87,240 from 3 cinemas; Jaipur 6,65,361 from 5 cinemas, Jodhpur (gross) 3,80,000; Hyderabad 21,51,906 from 15 cinemas (2 cinemas for 6 days), share 10,50,906, ex­cellent.

……

DO YOU KNOW?

* AATISH has created a record by collecting 1,15,209/- (against a capa­city of 1,25,521/-; 91.78%) in 1st week at Sadhana, Baroda.

* AATISH has created a record by collecting 84,190/- in 1st week at Ashok, Nasik.

* AATISH has created a theatre re­cord by collecting 94,769/- (gross) in 1st week (30 shows) at Apsara, Yeot­mal. 2nd week 1st day: 6,227/-

* ANTH has given a handsome share of 1,02,000/- in 2 weeks from Vasant, Akola.

* RAJA BABU has created a record by collecting 68,000/- in 1st week at Dreamland, Bijapur, in spite of Moharram.

* HUM HAIN RAHI PYAR KE has created a city record for second-run films by collecting 41,730/- in a week (24 shows) at Talreja, Parbhani.

* POTLATCH (E.) has drawn all shows full in 1st week at Radha, Akola.

YOU ASKED IT

A non-star-cast film has been acquired by my friend for the South circuit. Will the producer release the film in the South, without releasing it in other circuits sim­ultaneously?

– Producers generally prefer to release their film in at least one or two major territories first. If the film does­n’t find buyers, he may contemplate releasing it in the South only.

What is the reason for distributors pay­ing fancy prices for 1942 A Love Story?

– The price is being paid without seeing the film and the main reason for it is the ‘Ek ladki ko dekha’ song. This song has generated unprecedented craze and can be expected to ensure a bumper opening to the film when released.

Is Twinkle Khanna under a contract with Dharmendra as regards her first rel­ease?

– Twinkle is free to have any film as her premiere release after 31st Octo­ber, ’94.

NITIN MANMOHAN HOSPITALISED

Producer Nitin Manmohan had to be hospitalised on 21st June following a sud­den ailment. He is better now and has been advised complete rest.

IMPPA GENERAL MEETING ON 11TH JULY

An extraordinary general meeting of the IMPPA will be held on 11th July at ISKCON, Juhu, Bombay, to consider proposed amendments to the Articles of Association of the IMPPA. The amendments, inter alia, provide for election of 17 Ordinary class members instead of 16 at present. It is also proposed to expressly provide that additional members (not exceeding two), appointed by the executive committee from Ordinary class in special cases, will not have any voting power.

RAMRAO ADIK’S REMARKS IRK INDUSTRY:
IFFI BOYCOTT ON THE CARDS?

The film industry has almost decided to boycott the International Film Festival of India 1995, scheduled to be held in Bombay. This follows the remarks made by Maharashtra finance minister Ramrao Adik at the meeting of the various state ministers with representatives of the film industry on 24th June at Vigyan Bhavan in Delhi. The meeting had been fixed to discuss, among other things, the issue of entertainment tax. The various state sec­retaries had, a while ago, opined that the industry needed to be given relief in entertainment tax.

While most of the ministers were sym­pathetic to the demand of the film industry, Ramrao Adik is reported to have taken a contrary stand. He criticised the industry and its people and said, it did not deserve any relief. This, obviously, irked the industry representatives present at the meeting which was inaugurated by prime minister P.V. Narasimha Rao. Deputy chairman of the Planning Commission, Pranab Mukherjee, was present at the meeting.

The Madhya Pradesh chief minister announced at the meeting that he would grant 100% tax exemption to films shot in his state.

Earlier, while inaugurating the 21st conference of state ministers of information and cinematography, Narasimha Rao said that the film industry would have to impose self-regulation to check increasing obscenity and violence in films, fail­ing which the government would have to resort to other measures. Referring to complaints of high entertainment tax in some states, he said, the states were req­uired to augment their resources. He also added that the problem could be looked at in all its dimensions.

JAVED RIAZ DEAD

Producer Javed Riaz died on 20th June at Hinduja Hospital. He had been shot at by unknown assailants two weeks back at Versova and succumbed to his injuries on 20th.

Javed Riaz had produced two films, Jaan Ki Kasam and Yudhpath. He was currently producing Tu Vish Main Amrit.

ORIYA PRODUCER DEAD

Oriya filmmaker Subhas Mishra died after a cardiac arrest on June 17 at Cut­tack. He was awarded the Silver Lotus for his film, Swandana, in 1983.

MAHARASHTRA STATE POLICY ON WOMEN

Vice president K.R. Narayanan ann­ounced on June 22 the policy of the Maharashtra government on women for their overall development. The 29-point policy includes a demand from the Central gov­ernment to amend the Cinematograph Act to check atrocities on women in films, to issue clear censor guidelines, to give 50% representation to women on the CBFC and to allot a minimum of 36 hours on TV for programmes concerning women’s problems.

I-T AMENDMENT COVERS CINEMA BUSINESS? 

The Income-Tax Act has been amended with effect from 1st June, ’94 to provide for tax deduction at source (TDS) at the rate of 20% from rent payments of all kinds if the annual rent payable is more than Rs.1,20,000.

The new section, 194-I, of the I-T Act makes it obligatory for a person (other than an individual and HUF) paying rent, to deduct tax at source.

This section is likely to affect cinema business as cinemas screen films on rental basis. Third parties also take over control of cinemas on rental basis. Opinion is divided on whether the section covers cinema business at all.

ATMARAM NO MORE

Producer-director Atmaram breathed his last on 24th June in Bombay. He was 63 and had not been keeping well since a couple of years. He is survived by his wife and a daughter, besides two brothers, Vijay and producer Devi Dutt. Late Guru Dutt was also Atmaram’s brother.

Atmaram had just completed a 6-day shooting stint of a TV serial, Bhai Hum­ne To Suna Hai, which he was making for the Junior Artistes’ Retirement Fund. He had been shooting at home for the serial, giving instructions from his bed as he had been advised rest. He packed up around 8.30 p.m. on 24th. He felt uneasy at 11 p.m. and was rushed to Arogya Nid­hi Hospital where he was pronounced dead due to cardiac arrest.

Atmaram had produced and directed seven films under his banner of Atmaram Films. They were Kaise Kahun, Shikar, Chanda Bijlee, Umang, Yeh Gulistan Hamara, Aarop and Qaid. He had also directed Resham Ki Dori and Yaar Mera for outside banners.

Atmaram had recently also made a serial, Vividha, for Doordarshan. He had given up making films since many years.

He was actively involved in the Asso­ciation work of the industry, having re­mained on the executive committees of the Guild, Association of Motion Pictures Studios etc. He was a partner in Natraj Studios. Atmaram did a great deal for the economic upliftment of junior artistes.

His funeral took place this morning (25th June).

L.V. PRASAD NO MORE

An Institution Passes Away

Veteran producer-director L.V. Prasad died in Madras on the afternoon of 22nd June due to a respiratory ailment. He had been ailing for some years. He was 87 and is surviv­ed by his son, Ramesh, and a daughter.

An institution in himself, L.V. Prasad was a doyen of the Indian film industry. He made a number of films in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. He also acted in several films and had the dis­tinction of working in the first talkie films in Hindi (Alam Ara), Tamil (Kalidas) and Telugu (Bhaktha Prahlada). He had left acting years ago but made an exception in the eighties for Kamal Haasan’s Tamil film, Raja Parvai, in which he played a key role.

The famous Prasad Laboratory and Prasad Studios in Madras were L.V. Prasad’s creation. The biggest 70mm dubbing theatre is also housed in Pras­ad Lab. He had also set up the L.V. Prasad Eye Institute in Hyderabad.

Akkineni Lakshmi Vara Prasad Rao had no proper formal education in his village in Andhra Pradesh. He quit school because he was fascinated by cinema.

His stint with the celluloid world started when he got a job of an errand boy for Venus Film Company. He had also done the job of a gate-keeper. He did bit roles in Tamil and Telugu films before he came to Bombay and joined Prithvi Theatres in 1946.

Besides directing Tamil and Telugu films like Grihapravesham, Drohi, Mana Desam, Shavukar, Samsar­am and others, L.V. Prasad also made a number of hits in Hindi. In fact, he was adept at remaking South language hits into Hindi. Among the hits made by him were Sharda, Milan, Sasural, Chhoti Bahen, Dadi Maa, Beti Bete, Jeene Ki Raah and Ek Duuje Ke Liye. He had also made Jay Vij­ay, Mere Ghar Mere Bachchey and Shaadi Ke Baad. Naag Panchami, which is the latest blockbuster of Bengali cinema, is also made under the banner of Prasad Productions (P.) Ltd. He directed a total of 60 films. His banner has produced 50 films.

Prasad-ji was a much revered man in the industry and a father figure. He was a multifaceted personality and a genius in the true sense of the word. He made a humble beginning but rose to dizzy heights by sheer dint of hard work and intelligence. In 1982, he received the Dadasaheb Phalke award for his outstanding contribution to In­dian cinema. He also bagged the Ud­yog Patra award from the president of India in 1980. L.V. Prasad had been president of the South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce. The office of the Chamber remained closed on 23rd June as a mark of respect.

Garma-Garam

** After the resounding success of Khal-nayak in the Overseas, the craze for Subhash Ghai’s Trimurti there is unprecedented. Ghai has offers of unimaginable prices for the film’s Overseas rights, but he is not in a hurry to finalise the deal.

** More and more exhibitors are showing interest in installing the Dolby Stereo sound system in their cinemas. With Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! and 1942 A Love Story releases round the corner, the number of cinemas that’ve installed the sound system and those that’re in the process of installing it is in­creasing week by week – sorry, now it is, day by day. To the list printed in our issue last week can be added the names of the following cinemas which have placed the orders for the sound system: (1) Raj Mandir, Jai­pur, (2) Maheshwari, Hyderabad, (3) Vasant, Akola, (4) Sujata, Ran­chi, (5) Rajkamal, Mysore, (6) San­gam, Mysore, (7), Taksal, Varanasi, (8) Satyam, Delhi, (9) Sapna, Delhi, and (10) Manjushri, Kanpur. By August, there should be about 75 to 80 cinemas with this sound system. In the coming months, at least three films are sure to be made in Dolby sound system – Trimurti, Prem and Ram Shastra. Their number will also increase.

** There’s a laboratory in Bombay that charges producers for liquid-gate printing although it also has one dry-gate high-speed machine for which the charges are lower. As a smart Alec remarked, “What does this lab do? Processing and duping!” Note the pun in ‘duping’.

** The industry is pleading for abolition of entertainment tax. But why doesn’t someone challenge the very basis of the tax, in court? And its relevance when there’s no tax on films shown on Doordarshan and satellite channels? We may succeed in the court. Who knows?

** There’s news from Ahmedabad’s Drive In that the audience goes ber­serk when the trailer of Mohrais screened. At Navsari, the excited cinegoers are showering coins on the screen in appreciation of the trailer. This is mast mast reaction, indeed!

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Education-Entertainment-Englightenment

Great Hopes

Hopes are soaring high. After the fantastic initial that Aatish commanded, the trade is hopeful of bumper openings to Mohra and 1942 A Love Story. Both the forthcoming releases have, among other things, at least one song each, which has become a rage.

Another Song Too

That there was objection from the CBFC to the ‘Raat saiyan ne aisi bowling kari’ song of Vijaypath is well-known. Not so well-known is that the censors also objected to some parts of the picturisation of the ‘Ruk ruk ruk, arre baba ruk’ song. Reportedly, the objection stemmed from the showing of nuns and saints in the song. The Time people (producers) have since reshot the relevant portions.

Sippys’ ‘Bible’

It shouldn’t be one bit of a surprise if N.N. Sippy comp­letes his Teesra Kaun? by August, as scheduled. It was started on 16th June, and a non-stop shooting spell is to start before the month draws to a close, in Madras and Ooty. The entire script is ready and is on the sets in a bound book form. It is referred to (jocularly, of course) by the unit members as the Bible and when associate producers Pravesh Sippy and Prem Pillai proudly show you the bound script, they say, “Look, we have what hardly anybody would have before their film rolls and many wouldn’t even have after the film is complete – a complete script.” As the title suggests, Teesra Kaun? is a suspense drama. It stars, among others, Mithun Chakraborty, Chunkey Panday (whose costumes in the film are chic), Somy Ali, newfind Rituparna, Philips Top 10 Shah (that’s Satish Shah) and Rakesh Bedi. Somy Ali should thank K.C. Bokadia for Teesra Kaun? because it is after seeing a very sexy song of Bokadia’s Aao Pyar Karen that Sippy signed Somy. Information has also seen that song (‘Ooui maa, yeh kya ho gaya’) and Somy deserves distinction marks for her uninhibitedness and free performance. And so does writer K.K. Singh for his new style of working. Incidentally, Singh is off drinks.

Sharing Switzerland

Switzerland had become a meeting ground for producers of Sunny Deol starrers recently. Sajid Nadiadwala shot his Jeet for 15 days there. Besides Jeet, the two other Sunny starrers which were shot in Switzerland were Suneil Dar­shan’s Ajay and Anand Mama’s Himmat. And this was no coincidence. It was planned like that by Sunny. In the bar­gain, several costs got divided between three producers.

Chain Reaction

Raaj Kumar, who had been signed to act in an untitled maiden venture of Pitra Chhaya Productions (director Raj Sippy), has walked out of the project. It is whispered that the other hero, Rishi Kapoor, too, will not be working in the film since Rishi had signed the film mainly because it would give him a chance to work with Raaj Kumar.

(From our issue dated 18th June, 1994)

DO YOU KNOW?

* Meenakshi Enterprises, the Rajas­than distributors of AATISH, have paid Rs. 1 lakh towards advance overflow to producer G.P. Sippy.

* Asha Bhosle, who dubbed the title song of Major Ashok Kaul’s PAR­AM VIR CHAKRA on 15th June at Sunny Super Sounds, felt that the song was fantastic and would be an immortal one. Incidentally, a total of 10 top singers have lent their voices to the eight songs in the film.

* Anupam Kher and his secretary-brother, Raju, are acting together in a film for the first time. But they are not brothers in the film. They play enemies. The film in question is Avtar Bhogal and Zee’s Dil KA DOCTOR.

* TEJASVINI (tax-free) has created a district record by collecting 41,014/- (against a capacity of 42,827/-) in 1st week (29 shows) at Prabhat, Gondia. 28 shows were full.

* JURASSIC PARK has created a theatre record by collecting a total of 1,38,586/- in 9 weeks (60 shows) at Galaxy, Jamnagar.

* JURASSIC PARK (tax-free) has created a city record by collecting 32,608/- in 2nd week at Shree Mama­ji, Bhusawal.

* HUM HAIN RAHI PYAR KE has created a city record for repeat-run films by collecting 10,010/- on the opening day at Talreja Chitra Mandir, Parbhani. Better than JURASSIC PARK and YEH DILLAGI.

YOU ASKED IT

Why are trial reports of so many films “fantastic” even though they bomb when released?

– Trial reports are often reports of the connected people.

Why are top South stars paid so heavily for South language films while Hindi film artistes don’t command such prices in spite of the fact that Hindi films have a much wider market?

– Top South stars do a limited num­ber of films at any given time unlike many of the Hindi film stars. Secondly, in the South, the top actors/actresses are almost worshipped (and so are some directors) and they have immense fan following. Besides, the business of South hits often crosses 2 crore, a figure not many Hindi films touch.

If big industrial houses like Tata, Birla etc., were to enter Hindi film production, what changes could be expected in the filmworld?

– Maybe, Tatas and Birlas would change – they’d become indisciplined, filmy and what not!

DISCUSSION ON ENT. TAX ON 24TH

A meeting of the film industry with information ministers of all the states will be held in Delhi on 24th June. The ques­tion of entertainment tax will be discuss­ed at the meeting.

Before this, the industry leaders will meet under the aegis of the FFI in Madras on June 20 and 21.

I & B SECRETARY CRITICAL OF
VULGARITY IN FILMS

Film censorship is likely to become stricter. I & B ministry secretary Bhaskar Ghose is reported to have told members of the CFBC at a meeting addressed by him in Madras on 9th June to follow the censorship guidelines strictly and if they were not able to do so, to quit. He also said that he would hold the members of the Board responsible in the event of complaints regarding violence and sex in films.

Filmmakers and prominent film per­sonalities also participated in the meeting and revealed that Mr. Ghose was critical of members of the CBFC and some money-minded film producers whom he held responsible for depiction of sex and violence in films. He made specific reference to obscene songs and dances.

BOMBAY LAB STOPS PROCESSING WORK

Bombay Laboratories has stopped its processing department. Editing and rec­ording facilities are on and will continue to remain so.

‘LAADLA’ CELEBRATES 50 DAYS AT HANUMANGARH

Laadla completed 50 days of its run at Shiv Mandir cinema, Hanumangarh Junction (Rajasthan) on 10th June. Sweets were distributed among all the patrons who saw the film on the 50th day. A lucky draw was also held on that day.

SUBHASH GHAI DEFIES FMC
DIRECTIVE SHOOTS WITH SANJAY

Sanjay Dutt has participated in the shooting of Subhash Ghai’s Trimurti in direct violation of the FMC directive that Ghai cannot shoot with Sanjay as, according to it, films of other produ­cers are in the queue for clearance be­fore Trimurti.

A meeting of the FMC was held this week where Ghai’s representative confirmed that they had started shooting with Dutt as their set couldn’t wait any longer and Sanjay’s non-participation was entailing them heavy losses.

The FMC has taken a serious view of the violation by Subhash Ghai. A meeting of the governing council of the FMC was called earlier this week to decide on the action to be taken, but the meeting had to be adjourned as most of the members could not attend.

According to FMC spokesman K.D. Shorey, “The FMC had sent a telegram to Ghai on 11th May in reply to his req­uest for permission to shoot with San­jay Dutt, informing him that it was not possible to grant him permission and that disciplinary action would be taken against him if he flouted the FMC dir­ective. In spite of that, Ghai has chosen to shoot with Sanjay. The real strength of any association lies in the conscien­ce of its own members.”

‘Suhag’ 80% Complete

Shweta International’s Suhag was shot in a 40-day schedule at Khalsa College, Wilson College, Kamaal Am­rohi Studios, Film City, Juhu Scheme, R.K. Studios and other locales of Bom­bay. The film is now 80% complete. It stars Ajay Devgan, Akshay Kumar, Karisma Kapoor, Naghma, Aroona Irani, Dalip Tahhil, Adi Irani, Tiku Tal­sania, Brij Gopal, Gufi Paintal, master Ateet, Sunil Dhawan and Suresh Ober­oi. It is being jointly produced by Bal­raj Irani and Anil Sharma, and directed by Kuku Kohli. Music: Anand Milind. Lyrics: Sameer. Story advisor: Nausher Khatau. Screenplay: Honey Irani.

‘Raja’ 20-Day Spell

A 20-day marathon shooting schedule of Maruti International’s Raja will begin on sets and locations in Bombay from June 21. Sanjay Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit, Paresh Rawal, Mukesh Khanna, Dalip Tahhil, Reeta Bhaduri, Himani Shivpuri, Mushtaq Khan and Adi Irani will participate. The film is being dir­ected by Indra Kumar who also produ­ces it jointly with Ashok Thakeria. Music is scored by Nadeem Shravan. Lyrics: Sameer. Dances: Saroj Khan. Dia­logues: Tanveer Khan. Cinemato­gra­phy: Baba Azmi. Art: Bijon Das­gupta. Action: Amin Gani.

‘Akele Hum Akele Tum’ Marathon Spell Complete

United Seven Combines’ Akele Hum Akele Tum was shot in a 35-day schedule till June 15 at Famous Studios. Director Mansoor Khan picturi­sed two songs and scenes on Aamir Khan, Manisha Koirala, Tanvi Azmi, master Adil Baker, Neeraj Vora and a dog. Produced by Ratan Jain, the film also stars Deven Varma, Shafi Inam­dar, Satish Shah, Dinesh Hingoo, Har­ish Patel, Yunus Parwaiz, Anjan Sri­vastava, Mushtaq Khan, Veeru Krish­nan, Rohini Hattangady, Navnit Nish­an, Suresh Bhagwat and Paresh Rawal. Music: Anu Malik. Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri. Story-screenplay: Mansoor Khan. Dialogues: Nasir Husain.

Madan Mohla Launches ‘Chhupa Rustom’

The muhurt of Seven Arts Pictures’ Prod. No. 7., titled Chhupa Rustom, was performed on June 16 at Hermes Villa. CCCA president Santosh Singh Jain performed the coconut-breaking ceremony, Mohan Segal switched on the camera, and Subhash Ghai sounded the clapper-board. Shakti Samanta dir­ected the muhurt shot taken on Sanjay Kapoor, Manisha Koirala and Mamta Kulkarni. The muhurt is being follow­ed by a 10-day schedule. Being produ­ced by Madan Mohla and directed by Aziz Sejawal, the film has music by Anand Milind and lyrics by Anand Bakshi. Story-screenplay: Rajiv Kaul and Praful Parekh. Cinematography: Kamlakar Rao. Choreography: Saroj Khan. Audiography: Venugopal. Other cast: Raj Babbar, Neena Gupta, Dalip Tahhil, Tinnu Anand, Johny Lever, Vishwajeet Pradhan, Satyen Kappu, Avtar Gill and Dinesh Hingoo.

The muhurt was graced by prominent film and trade personalities inclu­ding Sultan Ahmed, Surinder Kapoor, Boney Kapoor, N. Chandra, Harmesh Malhotra, Pahlaj Nihalani, Satyen Pal Chaudhary, Ramesh Sippy (B.R.A. Corporation), Bharatbhai Shah, Pranlal Mehta, Dharam Pal Arora, Arjun Lulla, Naraindas Mukhija, Satish Kaushik, Indra Kumar.

‘Raja Hindustani’ In Mysore, Ooty

Cineyug’s Raja Hindustani is being shot in a month-long schedule in Ban­galore, Mysore and Ooty. Director and story-writer Dharmesh Darshan is pic­turising four songs and scenes. Aamir Khan, Karisma Kapoor, Suresh Obe­roi, Johny Lever, Navnit Nishan, Fari­da Jalal, Tiku Talsania, Pramod Mou­tho, Archna Pooran Singh, Veeru Krishnan, master Kunal Kemmu, Mohnish Bahl, fighters, junior artistes and dancers are participating. The film is being produced by Karim Morani, Bunty Soorma and Aly Morani. Music: Nadeem Shravan. Lyrics: Sameer. Screenplay-dialogues: Robin Bhatt and Javed Siddique. Action: Tinnu Verma. Dances: Raju Khan. Art: R. Verman. Tips presents the film.

15-day Schedule For ‘Karan Arjun’

Film Kraft’s Karan Arjun will be shot in a 15-day schedule from June 22 at Mehboob Studios. All the artistes will participate. It stars Raakhee, Sal­man Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Mamta Kulkarni, Kajol, Ranjeet, Arjun, Asif Sheikh, Jack Gaud, Ashok Saraf, Joh­ny Lever, Dinesh Hingoo, Suresh Chatwal and Amrish Puri. It is being pro­duced and directed by Rakesh Roshan. Music is scored by Rajesh Roshan. Lyrics: Indivar. Dialogues: Anwar Khan. Photography: Kaka Thakur. Editing: Sanjay Verma. Art: R. Ver­man. Dances: Chinni Prakash. Action: Bhiku Verma.

Naseer, Anupam, Ramya In Robin Bhatt’s Film

Ramya Krishnan, Naseeruddin Shah and Anupam Kher have been signed for Bhatt Production’s Prod. No. 1. The film stars Shah Rukh Khan and Pooja Bhatt in the lead. Producers: Ro­bin Bhatt and Viral Lakhia. Director: Mahesh Bhatt. Music: Anu Malik. Lyrics: Neeraj and Nida Fazli. The film’s second shooting schedule will com­mence in the first week of July.

‘Tu Chor Main Sipahi’ Launched

Producer Namrata Dehal launched her maiden venture, Tu Chor Main Sipahi, to be directed by Guddu Dhan­oa, on June 15 with a song recording at Sahara. The song, penned by Anand Bakshi and tuned by Dilip Sen Sameer Sen, was rendered by Kumar Sanu, Alka Yagnik and chorus. Starring Ak­shay Kumar, Saif Ali Khan, Tabu and one more heroine, the film has story-screenplay by Henry Robin and dialog­ues by Rumi Jaffrey. Cinematography: Sripad Natu. Editing: V.N. Mayekar. Action: Raam Shetty. Audiography: Venugopal.

Meanwhile, Anupam Kher has been signed to play an important role in the film being made under the banner of Pooja Arts.

‘Krantiveer’ Copy Out

The first copy of Mehul Movies P. Ltd.’s Krantiveer came out on June 15 at Adlabs. A Dinesh Gandhi pre­sentation, it is produced and directed by Mehul Kumar and stars Nana Pate­kar, Dimple Kapadia, Atul Agnihotri, Mamta Kulkarni, Paresh Rawal and Danny. The film is scheduled for rel­ease on July 15 all over.

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Education-Entertainment-Englightenment

Raamlaxman, Tera Song Deewana

In Maine Pyar Kiya, it was the ‘Dil deewana’ and ‘Kabu­tar ja ja ja’ songs which made the audience deewanee. And now, in Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!, the ‘Didi tera devar deewana’ song has begun to drive the listeners deewana. The song is fast gaining in popularity and is a favourite of the young and old alike. Besides this song, there are several others (‘Samdhi-samdhan’, ‘Dhik tana dhik tana’ and ‘Wah wah Ramji’) which are very tuneful (Raamlaxman).

Confidence…. Barjatya Style

It may sound unbelievable but it’s true. The Barjatyas are so very confident of the super-success of their Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! that they’ve made provisions for its run for not weeks but years! Their contract with Liberty, the main cinema of Bombay where HAHK..! is booked, provides for an increase of 8% in theatre rental every year. That is to say, according to the relevant clause, the cinemas will charge 8% extra rental in the second year of screening of HAHK..!, 16% extra in the third year…… What do you call that? Super-confidence!

Strict, Very Strict

Producers, take care. The CBFC is going to become strict as never before. If the rumblings in the Bombay regional office of the CBFC are any indication, censorship guidelines will now be strictly followed. Sex and violence in films will be viewed with a hawk’s eye. According to regional officer A. Rama­krishnan, although the guidelines are the same as they were earlier, their implementation will be complete. “Earlier, we used to give producers the benefit of doubt and clear many things (with alterations) on humanitarian grounds. But it won’t be the same now,” he cautioned, adding,” The censors have been given a lot of power now.” Steps have also been taken to check interpolation in foreign films imported in India. It is re­ported that the customs authorities are being approached so that prints of foreign films are sent straight to the CBFC instead of the importer. Laboratories are also being asked to use caution.

“NIMPA Not To Blame”: Dharam Pal Arora

With the Supreme Court having dismissed distributor Anil Kapoor’s writ petition for the registration of Jurassic Park (dubbed) in NIMPA, its release in East Punjab circuit is also uncertain as was a month ago. NIMPA president Dharam Pal Arora told Information, “You (Information) have been wrongly putting the blame on the Association’s office-bearers or so-called vested interests. The NIMPA had, as far back as in 1990, passed a resolution that it would not register dubbed films because at that time, dubbed films were usually sexy films and their distributors used to interpolate scenes and make a quick buck at the cost of Hindi films. Since it was a general resolution for all dubbed films, the Association could not, obviously, register Jurassic Park too, although it had nothing to do with sex. Rather than approaching the Association, Anil Kapoor chose to go to court directly. He may have succeeded in the high court but the Supreme Court chided him.” The NIMPA president added, “Association matters must be settled in an atmosphere of friendship and trust. Had Anil Kapoor app­roached NIMPA, his film would have been registered long back.” Dharam Pal Arora also clarified that no pressure had been brought on any exhibitor, whether of Ludhiana or otherwise, to refrain from screening Jurassic Park after the Punjab and Haryana high court’s order and before the Supreme Court’s order.

A Bargain

Venus has struck a very good deal with producer Mukesh Udeshi who is currently making S.P. Parshuram in Telugu. Reportedly, a song in S.P. Parshuram has a tune copied from the ‘Oh Baba kiss me’ song of Venus’ Miss 420. This enraged the Venus people who contemplated taking legal action against Udeshi. A compromise was reached at, whereby it was agreed that the music rights of Udeshi’s Prod. No. 2 (under the same banner, Sai Charan Combines) in whatever language made, would be entrusted to Venus at a price equivalent to the cost of song recordings only. That’s a bargain, indeed!

Fast-Paced!

A producer, often referred to as a factory of film production, is indeed as ‘fast’ as a machine in a factory. Recently, he app­roached a top young star to sign him for one of his many films. When the star asked what the story would be, the producer is said to have narrated him two subjects. And for that, he took just three minutes! Phew! even a machine would feel ashamed of itself. As for the star, don’t ask what he felt!

Unusual Subject

Rakesh Roshan has tackled quite an unusual subject (of reincarnation) in his latest project, Karan Arjun. One had an opportunity to see the rushes of almost three-fourths of the film. What strikes the attention, besides the subject, are the performances of Raakhee, Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan, the picturesque Rajasthan locales (and it is not the desert sand), Kaka Thakur’s camerawork, and Rajesh Roshan’s music. Rak­esh Roshan has handled the subject with conviction.

Ek Duuje Ke Liye

Remember the terrible fight-in-print between Pahlaj Niha­lani and Govinda? All the film glossies in town must’ve writ­ten about the tamasha dialogues and names the two called each other. After that, the two patched up their differences and became friends again. All that is old story. The latest is that Pahlaj will be making another film with Govinda. It will be directed by – yes, you’ve guessed it – David Dhawan.

Collections Versus Capacity

A cinema in a suburb (Juhu) of Bombay has a weekly capacity of over a lakh of rupees. Its average collections are Rs. 5 to 6 thousand – per week, not per day! In spite of such dismal collections, the exhibitor has hiked admission rates recently. What is the logic of the exhibitor’s action? Your guess is as good as ours.

(From Our Issue Dated 11^th June, 1994

ANTH

Ashok Honda Productions’ Anth (A) is the story of a young guy who vows to wipe off all evil. His sister is raped and murdered, her financé, tortured to death, his brother and sister-in-law are killed and these incidents only serve to make him more adamant about fulfilling his mission which he finally does. The underworld don, his wicked son and a corrupt police officer are killed by him one by one.

Action (Ravi Dewan) is the film’s mainstay. Not only is there plenty of it, it is also very effective and beautifully shot. The hero himself performing the dare-devil stunts further serves to accentuate the impact. But the violence may not be palatable to the ladies audience. The first half is fast-paced while the second half has some dull moments, when the characters start sermonising. The climax, again, is full of action and extremely effective. There is an under-current of emotions coupled with action, which makes the proceedings touch the heart. Comedy is missing. Dialogues are natural and witty.

Sunil Shetty gets distinction marks for a performance that will be hailed by the masses. He is truly brilliant in action scenes and also acts well. Somy Ali is alright in her maiden film. She exposes uninhibitedly in the rain song. Paresh Rawal, as the don, is natural to the core and plays to the gallery. Deepak Shirke is very effective. Makrand Deshpande’s performance is wonderful. Mohan Joshi acts with the right amount of restraint. Achyut Potdar stands out in the single scene of his. Aloknath does a good job. Vijayendra Ghatge, Neena Gupta, Vinay Sapru, Farida, Reeta Bhad­ uri, Anil Nagrath and the rest lend able support.

Director Sanjay Khanna does a very good job and impresses in his debut-making attempt. His shot compositions are worth a mention. Editing (Ashok Honda) is very effective. ‘Aa ja jaane ja’ is a well-tuned (Anand Milind) song and has been sexily picturised. ‘Jaane ja dil na jala’ is also good. Camerawork (Najeeb Khan) is eye-pleasing. Production values are ade­ quate.

On the whole, Anth has superb action for the masses and a fantastic initial draw to prove an overflow film.

Released on 10-6-’94 at Minerva and 26 other cinemas of Bombay thru Kanak Films. Publicity: excellent. Opening: very good. …….Also released all over. Opening was wonderful everywhere. 1st day In­ dore 70,000/- from 4 cinemas.

JAI-KISHEN

Shalimar International’s Jai-Kishen (UA) is one more vendetta tale with act­ ion as the main attraction. A pair of twin brothers, of whom one is blind, avenges the murder of their father. Although the drama is predictable, the blind brother’s action feats are wonderful and will go down well with the masses. The tracks of romance, emotion and comedy have not been developed to the desired level. Dia­ logues are commonplace.

Akshay Kumar shines in action scenes. Some of his stunts are clapworthy. Aye­sha Julka does a fair job. Chandni is so-so; she has shed weight and looks quite good. Reema is alright. Tinnu Anand, Mahavir Shah, Deepak Shirke and Harish Patel come up with average performances. Aroon Bakshi, Avtar Gill, Vikas Anand, Viju Khote, Ram Sethi, Yunus Perwaiz, Sargam and the others lend the desired support.

Direction is so-so. Of the songs, ‘Jhule Jhulelal’ is a hit. ‘Yeh mausam’ is also very appealing. Camerawork is okay. Other technical values are quite good.

On the whole, Jai-Kishen has good action, a very reasonable price and good initial value (thanks, perhaps, to the ‘Jhule Jhulelal’ song, and its release after a month of ‘no-releases’) to surpass the average mark.

Released on 10-6-’94 at Naaz and 16 other cinemas of Bombay thru Mahalak­ shmi Films Distributors. Publicity: very good. Opening: good. ……Also released all over. Opening was impressive everywhere.

DO YOU KNOW?

* SAAJAN KA GHAR has created a record by collecting 85,587/- (gross) in 1st week and 72,500/- (gross) in 2nd week at Kohinoor, Patan (Guja­ rat). It is running in 3rd week.

* DILWALE has created a city record by collecting 49,402/- in 1st week at Shree, Kamptee. 2nd week first day: 6,473/-.

* HUM HAI RAHI PYAR KE (TF) has created a record for repeat-run films by collecting 59,299/- in a week’s run at Gitanjali, Nagpur. This is the highest collection of a repeat-run film in the 14 years’ history of the cinema.

* WAQT HAMARA HAI is doing good business at Ramavtar Talkies, Nagar (Bharatpur, Rajasthan), in spite of opposition of SAUDAGAR. It collected 3,165/- in one day.

* SHOLA AUR SHABNAM (r.r.) has created a record by collecting 53,523/- in 1 week at Rupam, Surat and 95,539/- at Vaishali, Surat.

* BOBBY (r.r.) has created a record by collecting 62,430/- in 1 week at Ajan­ ta, Surat.

* JURASSIC PARK (tax-free) has broken all records of last 15 years at Anuradha, Nasik Road, by collecting 46,150/- in 8th week.

YOU ASKED IT

Instead of asking for a ban on dubbed foreign films, why don’t our producers also produce films like Jurassic Park with novel elements?

– They are asking for a ban as they are afraid that the flood of foreign (dubbed) films may ruin the Indian film industry.

When the film channel of STAR TV will only screen old films – five years and over – how will it affect the business of producers and music companies, as fear­ ed by them?

– Any form of film-based entertainment channel would affect film and music business.

How much business has Tirangaa done in Bombay.

– Over 1.5 crore!

CONTEMPT OF COURT

Nilesh Patel and Alan Cordery of Celebrity Promotions International Ltd. will probably face contempt of court charges in London for allegedly continuing to use photographs of Sridevi and Anupam Kher from Saawan Kumar’s Chaand Kaa Tukdaa even after the court granted an injunction in favour of Saawan Kumar, ordering Celebrity Pro­ motions to stop using the photograph in the publicities of their show which was held in London on 4th June.

BOMBAY LAB CLOSING DOWN

Bombay Film Laboratories is in the process of downing its shutters, it is learnt.

WOMEN ORGANISATIONS DEMAND REPRESENTATION IN CBFC

Some women organisations of Madras submitted a memorandum to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), pro­ testing against certifying the film Veera (Tamil), which allegedly legitimises bi­ gamy. They urged the Board to remove all those portions of the film which “port­ ray, recognise and legitimise bigamy”. The organisations feel that by passing such scenes, the Board has accorded its tacit approval to bigamy.

It has been said in the memorandum that cinema, the most potent mass medi­ um, rarely portrays a woman as a normal human being. She is invariably a glam­ orous exhibit in films or a tyrant. This further aggravated the prejudices about women and contributed to the violence against them.

The memorandum demanded inclusion of representatives of women organisations in the CBFC.

ANIL KAPOOR INJURED

Anil Kapoor was injured behind the ear on 9th June while participating in an action scene for Tutu Sharma’s Raaj­ kumar at Film City. He was engaged in a sword fight with a fighter and as the sword was real, it hit him behind his ear when he failed to dodge it in the nick of time. Five stitches had to be administered on the injured area.

JAVED RIAZ HURT IN FIRING

Producer Javed Riaz was shot at twice near Versova, Bombay on the evening of 7th June by two unknown assailants. He was admitted to the intensive care unit of Cooper Hospital and his condition was described by the police as stable.

Javed, who is currently producing Tu Vish Main Amrit, was with his wife when the assailants confronted him. There was a brief conversation before two bullets were fired at him in the chest. His wife escaped unhurt. No arrests have been made so far.

NAVNEET ADHIKARI NO MORE

Producer and cinematographer Nav­ neet Adhikari passed away suddenly on 4th June due to heart failure. He was 77.

He had produced several Gujarati films, besides cinematographing a number of big films including those of Prakash Pictures and V.M. Vyas.

Sadadi was held on 6th at his Irla (Bombay) residence.

Navneet Adhikari was actively associated with the Western India Film Produ­ cers’ Association (WIFPA) as its executive committee member for several years. His sons, Gautam and Markand Adhikari, are actively involved in the production of TV serials and films.

MAJROOH SULTANPURI BAGS PHALKE AWARD

Majrooh Sultanpuri will get the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke award for 1993 for his outstanding contribution to the growth and development of Indian cine­ ma. He is the first lyricist to win this award. The award consists of a Swarn Kamal, Rs. 1 lakh cash and a shawl. The award will be presented at the National Film Awards ceremony. Majrooh is the twenty-fifth recipient of the award but the first lyricist to be so honoured.

His career spans over four decades – from the fifties to the present. He came to Bombay (from Uttar Pradesh) in 1947 and by the mid-fifties, he had made a com­ fortable place for himself in the world of lyrics-writing.

Just last year, Majrooh Sultanpuri had bagged the Iqbal Samman, the Madhya Pradesh state award in recognition of his life-long contribution to Urdu literature.

FMC, FDC SIGN AGREEMENT

The agreement between the Film Makers Combine and the Film Distri­ butors’ Council in the matter of delayed video release and other things was signed on 10th June at IMPPA House, Bombay. It provides for a delay of two weeks in the release of video cassettes of films, from the date of premiere theatrical release. It also provides for a delay in telecast through cable TV by 6 months from the date of premiere release in cinemas and by five years for telecast on Doordarshan and satellite channels. This will apply to films started on or after 1st January, 1994.

The meeting was scheduled for 6th June earlier but was postponed to 9th. Detailed discussions were held between the FMC and the FDC on 9th regarding the clauses and language of the agreement. The actual signing of the agreement took place on 10th June.

FDC MEETING

Before the FMC and the FDC met on 9th, each association had a meeting of its members to discuss on the proposed agreement. The FDC had its meeting on the morning of 9th at the office of the IMPDA. MPA (Delhi), NIMPA (East Punjab), EIMPA (Bengal), BMPA (Bihar) and CCCA (C.P.C.I. Rajasthan) were re­ presented in the FDC. Reportedly, some members were not happy with a “mere 2-week delay of video cassettes”.

NO TO 5 YEARS

There was a proposal by the FMC to reduce the MG royalty agreement period from 10 years to 5 years, but the same was rejected by the FDC. Films will, therefore, be continued to be sold to dis­ tributors on MG royalty or outright basis for a period of 10 years as at present. In the case of release on advance or com­ mission basis, it was left to the individual producer and distributor to decide the period of agreement.

NO DUPE CHARGES

The FDC decried the tendency of pro­ ducers to collect dupe charges from dis­ tributors as a rule. After a lot of discussions, it was decided that no dupe charges would be collected on release prints. It was also decided that dupe charges would be collected from distributors on additio­ nal prints, only if the producer had actually taken out a dupe negative.

RELEASES AFTER A MONTH

The signing of the agreement between the FMC and the FDC puts to an end the month-long dispute between producers and distributors, mainly over the issue of video release. Anth, Jai-Kishen and Mawali Raj were released this week after a month-long period of ‘no releases’ following the FMC’s embargo on releases.

HAPPY

FDC president K.G. Dossani express­ ed satisfaction over the cordiality with which the meeting was conducted. “Let us now pray for the best,” he told Infor­ mation. FMC spokesman K.D. Shorey and CCCA president Santosh Singh Jain were also happy with the outcome of the meeting.

‘JURASSIC PARK’ IN PUNJAB: SC DISMISSES DISTRIBUTOR’S WRIT

The Supreme Court earlier this week dismissed East Punjab distri­ butor Anil Kapoor’s writ petition in the matter of the dubbed Hindi film Jurassic Park, on technical gro­ unds. It remarked that a writ petition could not be filed against a private association (which NIMPA is).

It may be recalled that Anil Kap­ oor (N.M. Films) had filed a writ in the Punjab and Haryana high court against the NIMPA’s refusal to register his dubbed film for East Punjab territory. On a favourable order from the high court on 20th May, the NIM- PA registered the film in his favour but went in appeal in the Sup­ reme Court against the high court’s order.

The SC ruled that a writ petition was not maintainable in the present case and asked Anil Kapoor to with­ draw the case as dismissed, which he did.

STARVATION PERIOD OVER!

That the public was starved of entertainment due to the embargo on new film releases since 6th May was evident from the excellent openings recorded all over by both the releases of this week, viz. Anth and Jai-Kishen. Which proves the point once again that people want to come to cinemas. Give them good stuff and they’ll give you good returns!

HERO HONDA…..
ER, HONDA’S HERO!

Believe it or not but Sunil Shetty has worked in Anth for a mere 30,000/- as his remuneration. So considerate is Sunil that he refused to accept money paid by producer Ashok Honda on the film’s release, towards his remuneration. “You’ve gone over-budget, keep the money,” Sunil and his dad are reported to have told Honda. Why, they even offered to help Honda by lending him money!

If all the heroes were like Sunil Shetty…..

3-E
Education-Entertainment-Enlightenment

In Action After Inaction

After a month of inactivity on the release front, the industry is in action again and how! All the three releases of this week – Anth, Jai-Kishen and Mawali Raj – are out-and-out action fares. That’s what one calls ‘Coming back with a ven­ geance’!

What A Song!

Had R.D. Burman been alive today, he would have been thrilled to see the immense popularity of one of his last com­ positions – the ‘Ek ladki ko dekha to aisa laga’ song from Vinod Chopra’s 1942 A Love Story. The song has become a veritable rage among the old and the young alike. Besides its wonderful tune, its simple lyrics (Javed Akhtar) and excellent rendition (Kumar Sanu) are responsible for the pride of place it occupies today among top chart-busters. In fact, this song alone can be expected to ensure the film a terrific opening.

“Unprecedented Craze”

While on 1942 A Love Story, Bombay distributor Bal­ krishna Shroff’s comments are worth mentioning here. “I’ve released so many films to-date but the craze 1942 has gene-rated among the public is unprecedented. I get so many calls from acquaintances not connected with the film industry, ex­ pressing their desire to see the film. Even the demand for its charity premiere shows is heavy. Baazigar may have done a business of 1.75 crore in Bombay but the craze for it before release was in the trade, not so much among the public.”

Hot News On Raaj Kumar

Not many may be aware that Raaj Kumar never shoots in Bombay in the months of May and June. It’s the heat, jaani. He would agree for shooting in these two months only if the shooting is at a hill-station.

Honour To Lyricist

It is a strange coincidence that a lyricist should be honour­ ed with the highest award in the world of Indian cinema in the year in which film lyrics have come under so much fire. The ‘Sexy sexy’, ‘Khatiya’, ‘Choli’ etc. songs have come in for heavy criticism, as much for their allegedly obscene picturisations as for their erotic lyrics. It is a great feeling then that veteran lyricist Majrooh Sultanpuri has been declared the winner of the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke award for 1993. Rightly has veteran Naushad commented, “The Phalke award to Majrooh Sahab comes at a time when good lyrics were gasping for breath in the stinking crowd of cheap words. True admirers of poetry will rejoice at the government’s decision to honour Majrooh Sahab.” Gulzar said, “The fact that a lyricist has been honoured with the Phalke award is an auspicious indication. Songs and lyricists have long been treated as pariahs. Now poetry has been accorded its place of honour in the cinema clan.”

^{(From our issue dated 4th June, 1994)}

LATEST POSITION

The heat wave in the North and other parts of India is taking its toll on the box-office collections.

…..

Jurassic Park (dubbed) proves the biggest blockbuster among dubbed films to-date as also of 1994 so far. 7th week Bombay (TF) 7,27,359 (51.55%) from 6 cinemas (3 on F.H.); Ahmedabad 1,24,385 from 3 cinemas, Surat 11,731, Baroda 25,180 (35.31%), 6th Jamnagar 12,500 (7 shows); 7th week Pune (TF) 2,62,069 from 5 cinemas (1 in matinee), Kolhapur (TF) 42,912 (68.57%), Solapur (TF) 21,635 (14 shows), Satara (TF, 14 shows) 13,880, Nasik Road (TF) 49,303; Delhi 6,44,416 from 5 cinemas; 6th week Lucknow 1,51,664 from 2 cinemas, 7th Agra 42,749, 3rd week Allahabad 38,700, 5th Meerut (6 days) 46,680; 6th week Calcutta 9,45,836 from 16 cinemas; 7th Jabalpur 40,170, total 5,19,542, Amravati (TF) 42,396, 7th combined week Akola (TF) 50,500, 5th Raipur 45,705, 6th week Bhilai 30,690, 4th Jalgaon (TF) 49,000, 2nd week Wardha (TF) 25,614, 6th Bilas­pur 15,504, total 2,05,000; 7th week Bho­pal 29,362; Jaipur 1,10,725, 5th Jodhpur 90,000, 6th week Ajmer 37,575; 7th Hy­derabad 1,09,143 from 2 cinemas (1 in noon).

Tejasvini 9th combined week Bom­bay (TF) 2,66,365 from 4 cinemas; 9th week Kolhapur (TF) 32,720 (65.68%), Solapur (matinee, TF) 7,725, 4th Nasik (TF) 34,500; 8th week Meerut (6 days) 26,919; 9th combined week Nagpur (TF) 96,676, 9th Amravati (TF) 37,975, Akola (TF) 32,650, 3rd week Jalgaon (TF) 48,634, 4th Bhusaval (TF, 6 days) 15,383.

……

DO YOU KNOW?

* Before Rajesh Khanna entered national politics, he had a tutor tea­ching him the Constitution of India.

* Gitanjali Cinema, Nagpur has been screening tax-free films of Khan heroes of late. Instances: Ayub Khan’s SALAAMI, Shah Rukh Khan’s KABHI HAAN KABHI NAA, Aamir Khan’s JO JEETA WOHI SIKANDAR, QAYAMAT SE QAYAMAT TAK and HUM HAIN RAHI PYAR KE.

* Police had to resort to lathi charge at Manek, Akola last week to control the crowds for KRANTI (r.r.). Accor­ding to Khanbhai of Khatri Film Enterprises, the exhibitor was quite reluctant to screen KRANTI (in its fifth run) and had to be almost for­ced to screen it. The result: record crowds and policemen to control them! Collection (at reduced rates): 63,919/-, a record for repeat-run films.

* LAADLA has created a city record by collecting 83,874/- in 2 weeks at Goyal, Kamptee. 2nd week collection: 35,708/-.

* DILWALE has created a record by collecting 1,87,371/- in 7 weeks at Alankar, Sagar (C.P.). The distributor’s share is a record 1 lakh!

* BEERA BEGO AAYEEJE (R., TF) has created a record by collecting 1,84,349/- in 1st week at Man­pra­kash, Jaipur. 2nd week first day noon show: 7,848/-, full.

SNAPSHOTS

‘HOT’ PROJECT

Vinod Khanna’s film has become ‘hot’ even before its formal announcement, not to talk of the launching. Even though the music director has not been finalised as yet, at least one music company has offer­ed Khanna 65 lakh for the film’s audio rights. One supposes, it is the father-son combination that has made the project so ‘hot’ – father as producer and son, Akshay Khanna, as the debut-making hero.

*       *       *

SANJAY DUTT ‘CLEARED’

The Cine Artistes’ Association, which had decided to monitor the star-ceiling scheme, has reportedly cleared Sanjay Dutt for Subhash Ghai’s Trimurti. San­jay is likely to participate, for the first time, in the film’s next shooting schedule.

*       *       *

BUMPER HIT

Even as the Hindi dubbed version of Jurassic Park is doing unheard of busi­ness in India, the original English version is said to have crossed the 1-billion dollar mark in the world! Coming back to the Hindi version, it is expected to touch a crore each in West Bengal (25% of a major territory) and C.P. Berar (40% of a major territory).

YOU ASKED IT

Is the FMC-FDC settlement a victory for the producers or the distributors?

– If the agreement can be implemented properly, it would be a victory for both, producers and distributors.

How much extra would the prints of 1942 A Love Story with Dolby Stereo sound cost?

– The producers have decided to charge Rs. 10,000 extra for every print, whether mono or Stereo.

With so much hue and cry being raised over obscenity in films, do you think cen­sors will become stricter?

– Whether or not the censors be­ come stricter, the producers themselv­es have realised that vulgarity/obscenity alone cannot guarantee success.

ARREST WARRANT FOR SANJAY KHAN

The first additional chief judicial magistrate of Mysore city court recently issued a non-bailable warrant against Sanjay Khan when he failed to appear be­fore the court in connection with the Pre­mier Studio fire tragedy case of February 1988, in spite of several extensions.

FILM CITY TO TIE UP WITH WARNER, UNIVERSAL

The Maharashtra Film Stage and Cul­tural Development Corporation, which runs the Film City in Bombay, is negotia­ting with Warner Bros., Universal Studi­os, American Television and companies in South Korea for special effects techno­logy, computerised lighting and camera work and other processes.

New sets are also to be put up at Film City, according to its managing director, Govind Swarup. An additional air-conditioned studio is also on the anvil.

Incidentally, security has been beefed up in Film City. A retired major has been appointed.

NATIONAL AWARDS FUNCTION POSTPONED

The 41st National Film Awards function, scheduled to be held on June 4 in New Delhi, has been postponed. The new date will be announced in due course. However, public screenings of the award-winning films will be held from June 5 to 16, as per schedule.

INDUSTRY MEETS PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE

The film industry representatives had a meeting with the parliamentary committee on communications on 1st June in Delhi. Sex and violence in films were the main topics of discussion. Vimla Verma, MP, presided over the meeting.

The committee wondered how obsce­ne songs were being passed by CBFC. FMC and CBFC chairman Shakti Sam­anta informed the committee that he had to merely sign the censor certificate and that films were not viewed by him. He also revealed that now film songs were being censored even before their telecast on Doordarshan or satellite channels. It is understood that the working of the CBFC will be improved now.

The committee is expected to make a report to Parliament soon. Other MPs who attended the meeting were L.K. Advani, Sushma Swaraj, Shravan Kumar Patel and Fazal Ahmed.

AFTER A MONTH!

There will be new film releases exactly after a month – from 10th June onwards. The FMC had suspended all releases after 6th May. Aa Gale Lag Jaa and Mohabbat Ki Arzoo were, consequently, the last releases. Anth and Jai-Kishen will be the first relea­ses after the settlement of the FMC-FDC dispute over the issue of video release.

VIDEO PIRACY AGAIN?

With the FMC and the FDC hav­ing decided to delay video cassettes of films by two weeks and with the governmental machinery being as it is, the menace of video piracy may recur. Since release in Overseas (theatrical as well as video cassettes) would be simultaneous with theatrical release, it may not be possible to stop the proliferation of pirated video cassettes in the country. If the pirated ones do not come from abroad, they may also be made indigenously. Who will check them? The FMC? The FDC? The video distributor concerned? Or the circuit distributors? Or would it be the government? No­ body is clear on this aspect as yet. Yes, the recent amendments in the Copyright Act may help. But finally, it is the implementation of the am­endments that will decide whether or not piracy can be stopped/checked.

Video Release Dispute: Chronology Of Events

(1) 25th November, 1993: The FMC and the FDC met in Indore and jointly decided to delay the release of video cassettes by 3 months from the date of theatrical release. 1st December, 1993 was fixed as the cut-off date, meaning that films started after 1-12-’93 would have video release delayed by 3 months.

It was also resolved at the Indore meeting that no films would be given for telecast on Doordarshan or any satellite channel before 5 years from the date of premiere release in the country.

(2) 11th February, 1994: The FMC, at a general meeting of producers, resolved to release video cassettes simultaneously with theatrical release of films. It rejected the Indore resolution of 25th November, 1993.

(3) 9th March, 1994: The FDC resolved that the 3-month delay would stay. In a meeting held in Bombay, it was decided that videos would be released only 3 months after theatrical release, as decided in the joint meet­ing of the FMC and FDC in Indore.

(4) 21st March, 1994: The FMC, at a meeting of its executive committee, decided to stick to its resolution for simultaneous release of video cass­ettes. It was resolved that there would be no delay in release of video cass­ettes.

(5) 1st May, 1994: The FMC, at a general meeting of producers, resolved to put off all releases after 6th May, 1994. It also reiterated its stand of simultaneous release of video cassettes.

(6) 11th May, 1994: East Punjab distributors (NIMPA) resolved that no distributor of the circuit would, until further directions, send any remittances to producers, whether the payment was towards signing amount, under-pro­duction instalments or overflow money.

(7) 12th May, 1994: CCCA (association of C.P.C.I. Rajasthan distributors and exhibitors) resolved to discontinue its joint tribunal with the Film Makers Combine.

(8) 20th May, 1994: Motion Pictures Association (MPA), Delhi, decided that distributors should not pay the instalments due to producers. They should also claim compensation/damages from the producers for not giving the delivery on the due date.

(9) 2nd June, 1994: FMC and FDC agreed, in Delhi, upon a 2-week delay of video cassettes. It was also agreed that cable TV rights would be sold for telecast not before 6 months from the date of a film’s premiere theatrical release. Telecast on DD and satellite channels not before 5 years from date of premiere theatrical release.

NEW RELEASES FROM 10TH JUNE

FMC-FDC Dispute Resolved

VIDEO CASSETTES TO BE DELAYED BY 2 WEEKS

The embargo on film releases has been lifted by the Film Makers Combine (FMC) following settlement of its dispute with the Film Distri­butors’ Council (FDC) in Delhi on 2nd June. It has been unanimously decided that video cassettes will be delayed for two weeks from the date of theatrical release. It has also been agreed that films will not be per­mitted to be telecast through cable TV for at least six months from the date of theatrical release and on Doordarshan and satellite channels, for five years.

Following the settlement, releases of films will re-start next week i.e. from 10th June. Anth and Jai-Kishen will be relea­sed on 10th, followed by Aatish on 17th. Vijaypath was scheduled for relea­se on 24th June but it is subject to CBFC clearance. The revising committee view­ed the film on 3rd June but its decision was not known to producer Dhirubhai Shah.

COMPROMISE FORMULA

Hectic meetings were held in Delhi between representatives of the FMC and the FDC on June 1 and 2. While the FMC had offered to delay video cassettes by a week, and cable TV telecast by three months, the FDC stepped down from its demand for a 3-month delay in release of video cassettes. It (FDC), however, insisted on a 4-week delay. A compromise was arriv­ed at by extending the period of delay for video cassettes to 2 weeks and for cable TV telecast from 3 months to 6 months. For Doordarshan and satellite channels, the period of delay would be five years.

TENSION-CHARGED

The marathon meeting sessions were not without their moments of tension. IMPDA president N.N. Sippy and FMC representative K.D. Shorey were involved in a heated wordy duel and almost came to blows in the meeting on 1st June. At least on one more occasion besides when N.N. Sippy and K.D. Shorey had a heated exchange of words, it seemed as if the negotiation would break down. That was when the FDC demanded a mini­mum 4-week delay of video cassettes.

CUT-OFF DATE

The cut-off date for the 2-week video release is not yet certain. It is believed that producers of films started on or after 1st January, 1994 would have to delay their video cassettes by two weeks.

FDC NOT TO MONITOR STAR CEILING

The monitoring of the star-ceiling scheme was also left to be decided by the FMC and the Cine Artistes’ Association (CAA). The FDC had taken upon itself the monitoring of the scheme as it felt that the FMC was not doing the job properly. At the meeting in Delhi, it was decided that the FDC would not be concerned with the implementation of the star-ceiling scheme. As the CAA had, a few days ago, resolved to monitor the scheme itself, the meeting left the issue to be settled between the FMC and the CAA.

AGREEMENT ON 6TH JUNE

Although the dispute between the FMC and the FDC has been settled, a written agreement will be signed on Monday, June 6, in Bombay. FDC representatives G.S. Mayawala, G.D. Mehta, O.P. Mittal (all from Delhi), K.G. Dossani (Calcutta), Prabhat Bhushan (Patna), Yashpal Mittal, Dharam Pal Arora (both from Jalandhar), H.S.P. Rao (Bhusawal) and Vijay Rathi (Amravati) are expected to arrive in Bombay tomorrow (June 5) for the meeting on 6th. Prior to the joint meeting of the FMC and the FDC at IMPPA House, a meeting of the executive committee of the FDC will be held at the IMPDA office on 6th.

BOMBAY DISTRIBUTORS KEEN

Insiders reveal that had this settlement not been arrived at, chances were that the Film Distributors’ Council would have disintegrated. The Bombay distributors had reportedly made up their minds that enough was enough and that the dispute had to be settled, come what may. They had also conveyed this to their counterparts in Delhi and Bengal, it is learnt. Had the FDC been adamant on a 3-month delay of video cassettes, the Bombay dis­tributors may have even split from the FDC.

CABLE TV RIGHTS

In the course of the negotiations bet­ween the FMC and the FDC, the latter put up a proposal that in the absence of a 3-month delay of video cassettes, distributors should be given the cable TV rights at least. Of course, the FMC rejected the proposal.

‘‘JURASSIC PARK’ IN EAST PUNJAB

Registered But Not Released

NIMPA TO MOVE SUPREME COURT

Following the Punjab and Haryana high court’s order of 20th May, the Northern India Motion Pictures Association (NIMPA) has registered the dubbed Hindi film, JURASSIC PARK, in favour of Anil Kapoor of N.M. Films for East Punjab. But that hasn’t improved matters for the distributor.

Exhibitors of Punjab are reportedly being pressurised by vested in­terests to refrain from screening the dubbed JURASSIC PARK. They are being threatened with non-supply of films in future for their cine­mas if they would screen the dubbed film. One exhibitor of Ludhiana reportedly screened the film on 27th May but had to discontinue it the following day (on 28th), obviously bowing down to pressure tactics.

In the meantime, NIMPA has preferred an appeal in the Supreme Court against the high court’s order dated 20th May. It has stated that the high court was not empowered to pass the order which it did as it involved an internal matter of the Association. The appeal is likely to come up for hearing on June 6 or 7.

It may be recalled here that no dubbed films were hitherto registered by the NIMPA and, consequently, they could not be released in East Punjab circuit. The landmark decision of the high court has opened the gates of the territory for dubbed films, but vested interests, occupying positions in the NIMPA, continue to be against the release of such films. Why else would an Association go in appeal against a high court order which makes it possible for a distributor to release a dubbed film in East Punjab?

Unanswered Questions:
Tough Task Ahead For FMC, FDC

It is fine that the FMC and the FDC have sat across the table and thrashed out their differences, arriving at a settlement. All unilateral decisions taken by both the sides have naturally been withdrawn.

A settlement is a settlement and so long as the entire industry benefits from it, it is not to be assessed as to which side stands to gain more and which side, less. There has to be a give-and-take attitude, more so when a dispute of the dimension as the current one is sought to be settled.

Both, the FMC and the FDC, had realised that they had gone too far in their individual stands. Both were, in fact, keen on a settlement. This served to make things easier.

Although a broad agreement on the various issues has been arrived at, some questions still remain unanswered. The ambiguity on undecided secondary issues needs to be removed for the proper implementation of the agreement in letter and spirit. The unanswered questions that need the immediate attention of the FMC and the FDC are:

(i) What will be the cut-off date from which the resolution of the 2-week delay of video cassettes will come into effect?

(ii) What about films launched after the cut-off date but of which video rights have been sold for simultaneous release?

(iii) What about producers who launch their films after the cut-off date but enter into back-dated agreements for sale of video rights (simultaneous release) to circumvent the FMC-FDC resolution?

(iv) Who will be responsible for ensuring that video piracy does not restart?

(v) How do the FMC and the FDC propose to stop infiltration of video cassettes from Overseas?

(vi) How do the FMC and the FDC plan to ensure that films are not shown on cable TV before 6 months of their theatrical release?

(vii) Who would be responsible for cable TV telecast in violation of the FMC-FDC agreement?

(viii) What will be the course open to producers if video distributors refuse – as they will, in all probability, if the agreement is implemented in letter and spirit – to take delivery after two weeks of theatrical release be­ cause a film has flopped?

(ix) Will the FMC take action against a video distributor who releases video cassettes simultaneously with theatrical release or will that be left to the producer concerned? And what if the producer himself clandesti­nely permits the video distributor to release the cassettes simultaneously despite agreement to the contrary?

(x) How much will the quantum of penalty be for violation of the agree­ment?

(xi) What if video distributors decide to refrain from buying new films unless video cassettes are allowed to be released simultaneously?

All these questions need to be answered now. The settlement of the FMC-FDC dispute is just a fraction of an achievement. So that the achie­vement bears fruits, it is imperative that decisions be taken on the above matters also. If, not, the agreement will remain merely on paper and nothing will come out of it.

– Komal Nahta

3-E
Education-Entertainment-Enlightenment

Salim-Devgan Together Again

Although producer Salim Akhtar and Ajay Devgan have had a tiff and have decided not to work with each other, Salim has repeated Ajay’s dad, Veeru Devgan, in The Don. Veeru had earlier composed the action scenes in Salim’s Jigar. Like Jigar, The Don is also being directed by Farogh Siddiqui.

K.P.S. Gill’s New Role

Punjab IGP K.P.S. Gill is not just a fan of Sridevi. He is also fond of acting, it seems. For, Mr. Gill has played the role of a DGP in producer-director Darshan Bagga’s Punjabi film, Mera Punjab. Indeed, the film’s title suits Gill more than anybody else!

(From our issue dated 28th May, 1994)

RELEASES

All releases are subject to the embargo on releases being lifted by FMC.

No new releases next week.

*        *       *

AATISH 10th June Maratha Mandir Bombay & all over

JAI-KISHEN 10th June Naaz Bombay & all over

ANTH 10th June all over

MAWALI RAJ (dubbed) 10th June many circuits

VIJAYPATH 17th June all over

EKKA RAJA RANI 17th June Dream­land Bombay & all over

CHEETAH 17th June all over

Janta Ki Adalat 17th/24th June all over

BRAHMA in June at Super Bombay

JUAARI, AAG, KRANTI-KSHETRA, WATAN, FAUJ & DO FANTOOSH in June

MOHRA 1st July Novelty Bombay & all over

KRANTIVEER 1st July all over

1942 A LOVE STORY 1st/8th July Metro Bombay & all over

AMAANAT 15th July all over

POLICEWALA GOONDA, ANDAZ APNA APNA & EENA MEENA DEEKA in July

HUM AAPKE HAIN KOUN..! 5th Aug. Liberty Bombay & all over

MR. AZAAD 5th Aug. all over

CHAAND KAA TUKDAA 19th Aug. all over

JAI VIKRAANTA in Aug.

DO YOU KNOW?

* Dharmendra is working in Mohan Kumar’s film – AAZMAYISH – after a gap of 32 years. Mohan Kumar had directed Dharmendra in ANPADH (released in 1962). Dharmendra is playing the father of debut-making lead man Rohit Kumar (son of Mohan Kumar) in AAZMAYISH.

* Producer-director Mehul Kumar has directed three actor-directors – Nana Patekar, Tinnu Anand and Danny – in KRANTIVEER. Earlier, he had directed two Khan actor-directors – Amjad Khan (in PHIR JANAM LENGE HUM) and Feroz Khan (MEET MERE MAN KE).

YOU ASKED IT

What is the loss to the industry due to the FMC embargo on releases?

– The producers whose films cannot be released due to the embargo are los­ing interest on their borrowings every day of delay. But there is a silver lining, too. Re-issue films are fetching very good terms (which, otherwise, would not have been possible) from exhibi­tors as there is a shortage of films.

Why is there no superstar after Amit­abh Bachchan?

– To be a superstar, one has got to be a complete actor and one’s films must run on the strength of his name. The industry doesn’t have such an actor.

What lesson does one learn in the film industry?

– That it is the most speculative in­dustry in the world. And that luck matters a lot in this line!

How much penalty will Dimple Kapa­dia have to pay producer Rahul Gupta for walking out of Kartavya?

– The quantum of compensation is to be decided jointly by the FMC and the Cine Artistes Association. The FMC has withdrawn its ban on Dimple as the CAA has made that a condition for negotiations.

PUNJABI FILM PRODUCERS FORM ASSOCIATION

An urgent meeting of Punjabi film producers was held at Dara Villa under the patronage of producer-director Dara Singh on May 22, to study and discuss the latest offer of ‘all help’ for Punjabi film industry by the Punjab government. The meeting was attended by over 30 Punjabi film producers who welcomed the Punjab government’s new liberal policy and decided to form the first ever body of all producers under the banner of ‘Pun­jabi Film Producers Association’.

Dara Singh, Preeti Sapru, Babu Singh Mann, Iqbal Channa, Karan Mann and Vinod Sharma were selected to form the working committee that will run the affairs of the association till the registration and other legal formalities are completed.

The very first meeting of the newly formed association also decided to urge the Punjab government to follow the Maharashtra pattern for the Punjabi film industry. It was also demanded that the government of Punjab should take an early cabinet decision on the matter.

It was further decided that a high-level delegation of the association, led by Dara Singh, call on the Punjab chief minister and other senior state administration offi­cials to put forward the case of the Pun­jabi film industry.

SALMAN-SANGEETA NOT MARRIED

Rumours regarding Sangeeta Bijlani’s marriage with Salman Khan have been denied as baseless by the former’s secretary.

KANU CHAUHAN STOPS USING UNAUTHORISED PHOTOGRAPHS

Kanu Chauhan, who is holding a star show in New York today (28th May), has apologised to Saawan Kumar for unau­thorisedly using stills of Sridevi and Anu­pam Kher from his Chaand Kaa Tuk­daa. This follows a legal notice sent by Saawan Kumar to Kanu, making it clear that if the latter did not desist from using the photographs in the publicity of the show, the former would commence a lawsuit against him.

In his reply dated 25th May, Kanu Chauhan has irrevocably agreed to stop using the photographs now and in the fut­ure, to remove all remaining posters bear­ing the infringing photographs, and to return these posters to Saawan Kumar.

GRANDSON FOR MEHMOOD

Mehmood became a grandfather for the first time on May 3 when his NRI-son, Masoom Ali, was blessed with a daughter in New York.

Masoom Ali is one of the producers, along with Ashok Mishra and Babubhai, of Canmore Cinema’s Dushman Duniya Ka, being directed by Mehmood.

CONDOLENCE MEETING FOR PHANI MAJUMDAR

Cine Society, Bombay, will hold a condolence meeting to mourn the demise of veteran Phani Majumdar and Subodh Mitter, on 30th May at 6 p.m. at Tarabai Hall, Marine Lines, Bombay. New Thea­tres’ Doctor, directed by Phani Majumdar, will be screened on the occasion. Phani was the chairman of the Cine Society.

RAJIV KAUL UNWELL

Writer Rajiv Kaul (Pattu of Pattu-Parekh fame) is unwell since more than a week and has gone to Pune for treatment.

‘AATISH’ AFTER FMC-FDC DISPUTE SETTLEMENT

G.P. Sippy has given an assurance to the FMC that he will not release his Aatish till the FMC permits releases. Earlier, he had sought the intervention of Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray in the matter. Bal Thackeray, while refu­sing to involve himself in the industry’s “internal problem”, asked Sippy to comply with the directives of his association. Bombay exhibitor U.A. Thadani last Saturday (21st May) obtained a court order directing G.P. Sip­py to deliver the prints of Aatish for release. However, Sippy is said to have conceded the FMC directive and ag­reed to postpone the release. If a set­tlement between the FMC and the FDC comes about, it will be released on 10th June.

Meanwhile, it has been decided that G.P. Sippy will continue to be the pre­sident of the Film Producers Guild of India. A meeting of the Guild was held on 21st May. Members prevailed up­on Sippy to refrain from releasing Aatish for the sake of unity of the industry.

‘ANTH’ NOT ON 3RD

Ashok Honda was planning to re­lease Anth on 3rd June but decided against it after yesterday’s (May 27) meeting of the FMC. The film may now come on 10th, according to Hon­da. The release would, however, be subject to the FMC lifting its embargo on releases.

“FIRST UNILATERAL DECISION EXCLUDED”: SANTOSH SINGH JAIN

FDC representative Santosh Singh Jain, while expressing happiness that movement was being made in the dir­ection of a settlement, said that the FMC had conveniently forgotten to include its (FMC’s) own resolution of not delaying video cassettes by 3 months, in the list of unilateral deci­sions, in its letter dated 27th May to the FDC.

Says Jain, “The FMC and the FDC had jointly resolved in Indore to delay video cassettes by 3 months from the date of theatrical release of films. But the FMC unilaterally decided to rescind that resolution. In fact, the FMC’s going back on the Indore resolution was the first unilateral decision from which stemmed other unilateral deci­sions. While the FMC has listed all the unilateral decisions that followed the first one, it has not included the first one. If even that could be with­drawn, as it should be in all fairness, we could begin our talks from the In­dore resolutions of Nove­m­ber ’93 and modify them to suit both, producers and distributors.”

GOLDEN PERIOD GOING

Unfortunately for producers, distri­butors and exhibitors alike, it is the golden (holiday) period that is being lost, thanks to the indefinite postponement of all releases. Collections at the box-office windows show a rise in the summer vacations every year, and two weeks of this period have already gone (technically, it is three weeks, but Aa Gale Lag Ja and Mohabbat Ki Ar­zoo were released on 13th May, a week after the FMC resolution came into effect). No new release is fixed for next week, too.

The industry is praying that an early settlement is arrived at and at least the remaining portion of the holiday peri­od is fruitfully utilised. For, the time that’s gone, is gone forever.

FMC, FDC KEEN TO SETTLE DISPUTE
Ball Set Rolling
Exhibitors Feel Pinch Badly

The ice has been broken. Although no meeting has been held between the two warring parties – the Film Makers Combine and the Film Dis­tributors’ Council – there is brisk movement in that direction. Letters are being exchanged between the FMC and the FDC and hectic meetings are held everyday – in Bombay (FMC) and other cities (various affiliates of the FDC). Unofficial talks between individual members of the FMC and the FDC also give an indication that both the parties are now keen for an early settlement. A meeting between the FMC and the FDC is on the cards early next week and it is expected that some solution will definitely be arrived at. If this happens, releases will begin from 10th June.

The Film Makers Combine (FMC) has written to the Film Distributors’ Council (FDC), inviting it for a dialogue after withdrawing its resolution passed unilaterally, while itself agreeing to withdraw its unilateral decision to cancel all releases. The FDC had earlier asked the FMC to lift its embargo on releases before it could come on the negotiation table. The FDC’s letter (dated 24th May) was in res­ponse to the FMC’s invitation (dated 23rd May) to the FDC to come for a dialogue with it to settle the dispute.

FMC WRITES TO FDC

A meeting of the FMC was held on 27th May where it was decided to rush a letter to the FDC, asking it to withdraw its unilateral decisions too, in the same way as the FMC was prepared to withdraw the unilateral resolution (no releases) passed by it, as desired by the FDC. Letters were despatched to FDC president K.G. Dossa­ni and other members of the executive committee like Santosh Singh Jain, G.S. Mayawala (general secretary), N.N. Sip­py etc. on 27th itself.

UNILATERAL DECISIONS

The FMC letter lists the following as unilateral decisions:

(i) FMC’s resolution to put off all releases;

(ii) FDC’s resolution to not permit its affiliated associations to register films un­less videos are delayed by three months from date of premiere release;

(iii) FDC’s resolution to monitor the star-ceiling scheme;

(iv) resolutions passed by the various affiliates of the FDC, stopping under-production instalments and overflow payments to producers.

FMC’s PROPOSAL

The FMC, in the said letter, has also given the following composite proposal for the consideration of the FDC:

(i) Home video to be delayed by 1 week from the date of theatrical release;

(ii) cable TV rights to be sold for re­lease not before a minimum period of 3 months from the date of premiere release;

(iii) telecast on Doordarshan and satellite channels not before five years from the date of premiere release.

The ball is now in the court of the FDC. In the meantime, there were no new releases (except for a dubbed Hindi film) for the third week in succession following the embargo on releases by the FMC. No film is also scheduled for release next week (3rd June) as no settlement has taken place as yet. If the differences are resolv­ed, Aatish, Anth and Jai Kishen are the most likely releases of 10th June.

That will ease the position of exhibi­tors all over the country, who are now feeling the pinch of lack of films very badly.

3-E
Education-Entertainment-Enlightenment

Banners Blackened

One doesn’t know whose mean mind and evil hands have worked on the film banners and hoardings in Bombay, but several of them have been defaced and damaged. Dhirubhai Shah’s Vijaypath has had to bear the maximum brunt of this crazy operator. Some hoardings of Anth have also been simi­larly defaced. Black paint has been smeared on the banners, rendering them almost useless.

Objectionable Bowling

While on Vijaypath, here’s one more. The Shah brothers have changed the words in the ‘Kal saiyan ne aisi bowling kari’ song from the film. It may be recalled that the song, which was sought to be censored by them, was found objectionable (vulgar) by the CBFC and was refused certificate. The Shahs have now had the lyrics changed. The song goes somewhat like this: ‘Kal saiyan ne aisi baat kari’.

Sanjay Dutt Starrers & Controversies

It’s simply a coincidence but a crazy coincidence at that. Somehow, Sanjay Dutt starrers have had a lot of pre-release problems in the last two-three years. Khal-nayak came when Sanjay had the TADA case going against him. There was great uncertainty about whether Shiv Sena and some other organisations would or would not allow it to be released. On the Diwali of 1992, Yalgaar had to bear the brunt of the exhi­bitors’ demand for a tax-free service charge of Re. 1 per tic­ket, from the Maharashtra government. Its advance booking started on Wednesday instead of the customary Monday. Sahibaan had far too many financial problems and it entailed the intervention of CCCA president Santosh Singh Jain and producer Mukesh Duggal to sort out the mess before it could finally hit the screen. Again, this time, with the FMC and FDC at loggerheads, it was Sanjay starrer Aatish that was at the centre of a raging controversy. Some people, it would seem, are born to be controversial or indirectly involved in controversies.

Uff Yeh Handa!

If you meet the young and enthusiastic producer-director of Uff Yeh Mohabbat, Vipin Handa, chances are that you will be in splits till you bid him goodbye. Vipin loves to crack jokes – even at himself – and has a wonderful style of narrating them. When he describes his maiden film as a teenage romantic story, you can bet, it will have comedy as its high­light. Vipin is making the film with Twinkle Khanna and Abhishek Kapoor (Gattu), both newcomers, in the lead. He him­self is a newcomer for the big screen but he has already made some TV serials. His partner in production, Anil Saigal, says, “Basically, it is the same; only the format is different, there, it is the small screen, here, it is the big screen.” Uff Yeh Mohabbat has been shot for a substantial portion in Sikkim.

Super-Confidence!

The producer of a big film due for an early release at Met­ro, Bombay, is so confident of its super-success that he is re­ported to have told the cinema manager, “Which film has had the highest run at your cinema? Book my film (in advance) for a week more than that film!”