Tamil Nadu theatres call off strike over 30% Local Body Tax

Agencies
July 6, 2017

Chennai, Jul 6: Bringing good news for cinema goers in Tamil Nadu, theatres owners and distributors have called off strike.

The move comes after the state government said they will form the committee to decide on municipal tax.strike3

The theatre owners and distributors in Tamil Nadu were demanding withdrawal of 30 per cent local body tax on movie tickets.

About 1100 theatres were shut in the state since Monday.

"We are withdrawing our strike. From tomorrow theaters will be open," Abhirami Ramanathan, Tamil Nadu Theatre Owners and Distributors Association.

The news comes has brought cheers for everyone as new films are traditionally released on Friday, considered auspicious in the film fraternity.

Film producer Venkat Shuba said, "They have agreed to look into our demands. We have withdrawn the strike. Around five movies released last Friday are still waiting for an opening. We will continue with those movies. We will not take new releases this Friday".

He said the ticket prices for now will not have the extra 30 percent after GST. The committee will comprise members from the film industry and state government.

The relief came after a lot of pressure from the film industry and Opposition.

The issue was raked up in the Assembly today by DMK working president M K Stalin. He said, "Top stars like Kamal and Rajini have spoken about it. Film industry is not happy about the 30 per cent municipal tax. I urge the state government to exempt the local tax for the ticket prices. They already have a tax of between 18 per cent to 28 per cent. Kerala and West Bengal have waived off the tax. Hence I request the Tamil Nadu government to waive off the municipal tax."

Replying to him, Tamil Nadu Municipal Administration Minister S P Velumani said, "We are holding talks with the film industry. Soon there will be a solution. But the local body tax is not a dual tax".

The superstar had requested the state government to waive off the tax keeping in mind the livelihoods of many in the industry. Kamal Haasan replied to Rajinikanth saying, "The film industry has estimated a loss of Rs 40 crores in the four days at the rate of Rs 4 crore which was incurred per day. The loss is for producer, distributors, theatre owners and canteen owners".

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Agencies
July 27,2020

Mumbai, Jul 27: Action director Parvez Khan, known for his work in films like Sriram Raghavan's Andhadhun and Badlapur, died on Monday after suffering a massive heart attack. He was 55. 

Parvez, who worked in the industry since 1986, was rushed to Ruby Hospital after he complained of chest pain, his longtime associate Nishant Khan told PTI. "He suffered a major heart attack in the morning. He was rushed to the hospital but was pronounced dead. He didn't have any health issues but felt chest pain last night," Nishant said.

Filmmaker Hansal Mehta, who worked with Parvez in the National Award winning 2013 drama Shahid, said the action director was extremely skilled. "Just heard that action director Parvez Khan is no more. We had worked together in Shahid where he executed the riots sequence in a single take. Very skilful, energetic and a good man. RIP Parvez. Your voice still rings in my ears," Hansal tweeted. 

Parvez started his career by assisting action director Akbar Bakshi in films like Akshay Kumar's Khiladi (1992), Shah Rukh Khan's Baazigar (1993) and Bobby Deol-starrer Soldier in 1998. It was with Ram Gopal Varma's Ab Tak Chhappan in 2004 that he started working independently and went on to have a long-standing collaboration with filmmaker Sriram Raghavan in films such as Johnny Gaddaar (2007), Saif Ali Khan-starrer Agent Vinod in 2012 and Badlapur, featuring Varun Dhawan. He is survived by wife, son, daughter-in-law and a granddaughter.

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Agencies
July 8,2020

Mumbai: The 11th edition of KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival is going virtual this year due to the COVID-19 lockdown. The festival is coming up with a full-slate of 157 films from 42 countries.

Tipped as South Asia's biggest LGBTQIA+ film festival, it is the first Indian film festival to come up with a slate of new programs for this year.

The slate of films include 30 films from India, as well as films from countries like Belarus, Iran, Iceland, Lebanon, Macedonia, Malaysia, Puerto Rico, Tunisia, etc.

"We are extremely delighted to launch the registration for the KASHISH 2020 Virtual with a full slate of films as well as panel discussions, filmmaker Q&As, etc, almost replicating the ground event. Only this year not only Mumbaikars but people across India and the world can participate in the festival and enjoy amazing LGBTQIA+ films, discussions and performances!", said Sridhar Rangayan, festival director.

"We are thrilled by almost 95 per cent of the filmmakers whose films were selected to screen at the ground festival, agreeing to screen with us at our online festival. We are overwhelmed by the response from the filmmakers, and we are really glad to reach their films out to the world. This speaks a lot about their trust and support towards the festival", said Saagar Gupta, Director, Programming.

The registrations to attend the festival is now open and details can be viewed at the festival website http://mumbaiqueerfest.com/attend/ along with information about the film line-up. There are early-bird full-festival passes at a modest price in India and outside India. The early-bird offer will be open for a week.

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News Network
June 4,2020

Mumbai, Jun 4: Casting director Krish Kapur, who had worked on films like Mahesh Bhatt's Jalebi and Kriti Kharbanda-starrer Veere Ki Wedding, passed away at the age of 28 due to brain hemorrhage, his family said.

There was speculation that Kapur died in a road accident but his maternal uncle, Sunil Bhalla, dismissed the reports, saying that the casting director fainted at his home in suburban Mira Road here and suffered brain hemorrhage.

According to Bhalla, Kapur breathed his last on May 31.

"He had no medical history. He was healthy and doing absolutely fine. On May 31, he just collapsed and started to bleed. He died of brain hemorrhage," Bhalla said on Wednesday.

Kapur is survived by his mother, wife and seven-year-old child.

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