Tourism and Cinematography Minister Kandula Durgesh has invited the Telugu film industry to shoot more films in the scenic locations in Andhra Pradesh, adding that it would help promote the tourism.
“The State government will extend all possible help to the film industry and the investors set up film studios, dubbing theatres and re-recording studios,” he said, during the CII Tourism & Travel Summit organised in the city on October 25 (Friday).
He was responding to noted producer Daggubati Suresh Babu, who was also one of the speakers, who spoke about the issues being faced by the film units while shooting in Andhra Pradesh.
Mr. Durgesh said that measures to support the film industry has been included in the new tourism policy, which is expected to come under implementation in the next few months.
The Minister said that there are a wide variety of tourist spots and scenic locations in Andhra Pradesh. The number of shootings organised and revenue generated in Andhra Pradesh is more compared to that in Telangana. But Andhra Pradesh is lacking popularity in film tourism compared to other States, he said.
“The reason behind it is lack of better amenities, studios and dubbing theatres. This is where, we really want to improve,” Mr. Durgesh said, adding that investors and film personalities should come forward to set up studios, dubbing theatres, re-recording studios, for which the government would extend whatever support they need. Due to financial constraints, the government is not able to take up such projects as of now, he said.
Mr. Durgesh also said that the State Government will also support the film industry in ticket fare hike issue.
Tourism promotion
The Cinematography Minister also urged the film industry to help government in promoting tourist spots.
“Many scenes are being shot in Maredumilli, Visakhapatnam, Konaseema, Kurnool, Araku Valley and other areas. While the scene in the movie, the producers should try to display the name of the location/spot down the screen. This will really help boost tourism,” he said.
Mr. Suresh Babu said that number of permissions are needed to be taken up for film shootings. He also said that improving hygiene in the hotels, restaurants and eateries at the tourist spots and creating better facilities for the film units will definitely help.
He observed that crowd is also one of the factors that a film unit considers while finalising a location.
“Recently, a movie of Superstar Rajinikanth was shot in Visakhapatnam. Chennai has all the requirements for the shoot, but crowd was a factor to shoot in Vizag. When it comes to village sequences, some Tamil actors come to Rajahmundy, while Telugu actors go to Pollachi.” he said.
Mr. Suresh Babu observed that film business has become democratic and new film hubs can be created. He said that many scenes pertaining to popular Kannada film ‘Kantara’ was shot in a village near Mangalore, where a resort owner converted the stay area to a studio. The sequel for the film Kantara 2 is now being shot in Kandapura, where everyone stays and they are rooted to the village.
“If any film unit wants to shoot in a village set up, they can stay in Vizianagaram, Rajahmundry or some other place and try to make cinema from that world. This is how, we can create small hubs of film industry,” he said.
Published – October 26, 2024 09:54 pm IST
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