Manoj Bajpayee on the monopoly of the film industry: ‘Big films get most of the shows by intimidating exhibitors’ Manoj Bajpayee stressed the need for a “level playing field” for films of all sizes and scales in India. He said the dominance and monopoly of big budget movies made it very difficult for small, independent films to find screens across the country. Let’s see what the actor had to say.
Manoj Bajpayee on: government intervention in cinema: exhibition:
In a conversation with Hindustan Times, Manoj Bajpayee was asked to share his views on filmmaker Reema Kagti’s statement that small films need patronage, not “support” from the audience. The actor replied, “In small films, patronage shuruaat hoti hai exhibition se. (Patronage begins at the exhibition). The day the government makes this policy that every film gets enough showcasing, then they will have some kind of equal platform, a level playing field. Until we get that, it’s going to be tough. “Manoj Bajpayee said he agrees with Reema Kagti’s statement that Indian independent cinema needs patronage but wants the patronage to come from the administration and for it to be infrastructure, not money. “Patronage humko sarkari hi milni chahiye (We should get patronage from the government), not in terms of money but in terms of assurance that your film will be screened and there will be a level playing field.“
Manoj Bajpayee talks about: Marathi movies: advantage:
In the same conversation, the actor cited the example of the state of Maharashtra, which ensures that Marathi films get enough screens across the state, even in a cultural melting pot like Mumbai, which is also the seat of the Hindi film industry. He said, “Marathi cinema ko sabse bada faayda yeh hua (the biggest advantage of Marathi cinema) is that the Maharashtra government has taken the initiative to ensure that Marathi films get a level playing field (field). Woh minimum number of screens guaranteed across India milea humko bhi (We should also get the guarantee of a minimum number of screens across India).
Manoj Bajpayee says that big budget filmmakers are afraid of distributors
Manoj Bajpayee also talked about the monopoly and dominance of big budget movies. He said, “Har ek big budget ki film jo hai woh distributors ko aur exhibitors ko dara-dhamkaake sabse zyada show le lete hain. (Every big-budget film, they get the most shows by intimidating distributors and exhibitors).” The actor repeated, “A level playing field is needed.”
More about Manoj Bajpayee:
Manoj’s latest film, ‘Governor’, is a low-budget independent film that had a limited release in India last weekend. Directed by Chinmay D. Mandlekar, the political drama stars Manoj Bajpayee as S. Venkitaramanan, the former governor of the Reserve Bank of India. The film recounts Venkitaraman’s role in saving India from the 1990s economic crisis.