The year end festive season has always been the best time for the Malayalam movie industry. But this Christmas, it looks unlikely that any movie will be released due to the tussle between different associations in the industry.
The Kerala Film Producers Association (KFPA) and the Kerala Film Exhibitors Federation (KFEF) are in a tiff over the sharing of theatre collections. The discussion held on Tuesday, which was attended by Culture Minister AK Balan, was not fruitful as film producers and distributors did not agree to the demand of 50% theatre share by theatre owners.
The minister said that a commission would be set up to solve the problems in the industry soon.
The KFEF is adamant that they won’t exhibit movies till they get a 50% share.
Dulquer Salmaan's "Jomonte Suviseshangal", Mohanlal's "Munthirivallikal Thalirkumbol", Prithviraj’s horror thriller "Ezra" and Jayasurya's "Fukri" were the scheduled Christmas releases this year.
Meanwhile, former minister and actor Ganesh Kumar has come down heavily on the organisations involved in the strike. He said that the government should take steps to control the increasing ticket rates.