Ghai wants panel for Bengali films

Noted filmmaker Subhash Ghai has called for creating a separate film commission in West Bengal.

Speaking at the CII meet on Entertainment East in Kolkata on Tuesday, Ghai said government need to facilitate one window system for outside producers to shoot here.

Ghai who is also the chairman of big banner movie house Mukta Arts, asked government to accord first priority to cinema halls.

"Old ones should be converted to digital cinema. Government should allow old halls to convert into entertainment centre so that owning a theatre becomes viable proposition," he said.

Ghai urged regional movie makers to marry art with commerce and introduce transparency in entire movie making process.

Chief minister of the state Buddhadeb Bhattacharya also conceded that Bengali film industry had been passing through a very critical phase for a little over two decades.

"The current stagnation in our film industry is largely due to resource constraints, lack of modern studio lab facilities, unequal competition from Mumbai-based big budget films and some other allied problems," he said.

He pointed some of the initiative taken by the government to tide over the crisis. Sanjay Budhia, chairman of CII of eastern region, also spoke on the occasion.