Mamata govt tells cinema halls to screen Bengali film on prime time

KOLKATA: The West Bengal government has made it mandatory for cinema halls and multiplexes in the state to screen at least one Bengali movie during the prime time for a minimum of 120 days a year. Prime time for multiplexes and cinema halls is scheduled between 12 noon and 9 PM.

A notification signed by the principal secretary of the information and cultural affairs department, Vivek Kumar, was issued Saturday. “The Governor is hereby pleased to issue the following directive to all licensees of the State, except the licensees of the GTA areas, with immediate effect,” it read.

According to Kumar, the move aims to encourage the Bengali film industry. He said the state government will bring amendments in the West Bengal Cinema (Regulation of Public Exhibitions) Rules, 1956 in due course.

Welcoming the decision, film director Aniket Chattopadhyay thanked the chief minister, saying “it is a great news.”

However, Eastern India Motion Pictures Association has expressed concern that this decision of the state government might pose financial difficulties for certain cinema hall owners, whose halls are located in places with very few viewers Of Bengali movies. “There are certain cinema halls in localities like Burrabazar, Sealdah, Mitabruz, Esplanade and Park Street, where there are very few viewers of Bengali movies. So this decision might pose financial difficulty for these hall owners,” said association chairman Ratan Saha.