Filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan has come down heavily on Kerala Film Exhibitors Federation (KFEF), saying that the theatres that refuse to screen movies should be close down.
The veteran director was reacting to the tussle between Kerala Film Producers Association (KFPA) and KFEF over profit sharing.
“This shows the false pride of the theatre owners. They have no responsibility towards cinema. They won’t get affected whatever happens to the Malayalam film industry. If not Malayalam they would go for Tamil movies. They have no commitments to our own cinema,” he lashed out at theatre owners.
He also said that Cinema Regulatory Authority should be formed to avoid such a crisis. Adoor also said that theatre owners have caused huge loss to the industry and those who are involved should be disqualified.
The Malayalam film industry has come to a standstill since December 16.
The KFEF has been demanding equal share of the box-office collection, as single-screen owners now have to pay 60% to distributors and producers during the first week of a new release, while multiplexes get to keep 50% of the share.
Last week’s negotiations under the patronage of the state Culture Minister AK Balan bore no fruit.
Mollywood had no releases for Christmas and New year. The film industry has reportedly sustained a loss of about Rs 5 crore due to the stalling of new releases.