The election dates for the Tamil Nadu Assembly have been announced as May 16 — and as per the rule, the present AIADMK Government cannot pass any new GOs — including the waiving of tax provided for ‘U’ Certified Tamil films! Given the circumstances, several big-budget movies, which were scheduled for release in April and May, are now caught in a serious predicament.
The films include Vijay’s Theri, Rajini’s Kabali, Suriya’s 24, Karthi’s Thozha, Dhanush’s Kodi, and STR’s Idhu Namma Aalu, which were all slotted for a summer release. If tax exemption is not given to the U-certified movies, then biggies might lose out on several crores of rupees, as distributors in the state would offer only a lesser price for their flicks. Kalaipuli S. Thanu, president of the Tamil Film Producers Council met the Chief Election Officer Rajesh Lakhoni recently, to resolve the unanticipated situation.
Talking to DC, Thanu said, “I have put forth our condition to CEO Rajesh Lakhoni. He has also ensured that he would look in to the matter and take necessary steps to resolve the issue.” Yet another problem the film producers faced, was regarding the transportation of funds for production purposes, be it locally as well as outdoors. Through an intervention by Thanu, the difficult situation was overcome to some extent.
“As the Model Code of Conduct is in place, money movement is being restricted for shooting purposes. We have requested the CEO to permit producers to carry Rs 2 lakhs to Rs 5 lakhs for small movies, and Rs 5 lakhs to Rs 10 lakhs for big-budget films. Rajesh Lakhoni has replied promptly that whoever is taking money for shooting purposes, should carry all the details of the venture, in the official letter pad of the Tamil Film Producers Council,” the ace producer reveals to us.
