Members of the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) are claiming that reality shows are stealing their box office collections by casting Sandalwood actors.
President of the KFCC, Sa Ra Govindu told The News Minute that, over the last few years, reality shows have negatively impacted the industry. The decision to request actors to keep away from reality shows was, therefore, taken in a general body meeting held recently.
“Come 9 pm, all the people are glued to Kannada channels watching their favourite stars on TV. There have been so many evening shows in theatres for Kannada movies cancelled because of this,” said Govindu.
Asked if they were sure about their conclusions, he said, “When big stars like Sudeep and Shivraj Kumar are participating in the shows, this can be the only reason.”
He clarified that he is not against these shows, but felt that they should not cast actors.
“Now Bigg Boss will start. People want to watch big faces like Sudeep on TV, rather than their films on the screen. Producers are badly hit by the poor response in the theatres,” he said.
Govindu said that the film chamber is not pressurising actors, but is approaching them and requesting them to keep away from these shows. “They must take into consideration their producers’ interests too,” he said.
Film director B Suresh, however, thinks it is the artist’s choice to do what he or she wants, because, at the end of the day, they have to take care of their own lifestyles too.
"There are artists who don't commit for another programme until their films are released – however long it might take. Those kinds of committed artists and film makers are a rarity today. At the end of the day, for a star – whose star status is short-lived, acting is a job and reality shows assure them a fixed income,” he said.
"No rule can bring about a change in the practice of discipline,” said Suresh, insisting that such changes can only come from individual attitudes toward work. “So, asking someone to stay away from something may ultimately not work at all.”