‘Do we live life or does life live us?’

This is an industry that gave the world Paltadacho Munis or The Man Beyond the Bridge  directed by Laxmikant Shetgaonkar which premiered at 2009 Toronto International Film Festival, where it won the prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI Prize) for Discovery.^[

The industry is undoubtedly one of the smallest in the country and has struggled to stay afloat. Films made in Konkani have been made regularly but find it difficult to recover investments.

Now with the CoronaVirus spreading all over the country and yes Goa too, the industry is now at a standstill. Nothing new one would say but then what are the people in the industry planning to do to deal with these tough times.        

On average, around ten to twelve films are planned and may even commence shooting but it is around six to eight movies that are released every year. Tapan Acharya, a popular actor whose film debut in Aleesha in 2004 resulted in it winning the National Award for Best Feature Film in the Regional Category was categorical when he said it was very difficult to make recovery on investment in regional cinema. He said “It is very difficult in Konkani cinema. Now with COVID 19 everything is up in the air. There is no clarity as to how long everything will stay shut. People need entertainment and are watching absolutely anything. A local cable channel had a Konkani film festival. I have no idea if it was supported by advertising.  You have to remember with the market down, there is no advertising. Everything is inter-related. I believe the future is OTT or Over The Top media platform, of online movie streaming. This will help us connect with the large diaspora which is located all over the world. That could be the future for Konkani films which are struggling to either get the right time in a theatre or reaching out to a large audience”.

According to estimates, in the state of approximately fourteen lakh Goans, around a lakh watch Konkani films.  Rajesh Pednekar, Producer of K Sera Sera which won a national award and waiting to release another movie but which is on hold due to the virus said making a movie was not an easy task. After it was made, releasing it and getting it shown in cinemas around the state was a battle. He said “ I usually show my movies in cinemas in Ponda, Margao, ESG as well as Kala academy. I can then make money, otherwise, it is difficult. We may get a grant from the government which usually takes a year to get but if you are spending a crore, it can be very tough to recover investments”.

In Goa, he said everything depended on word of mouth and it was increasingly getting difficult to get investors. OTT’s he said was a very good option that could be and should be considered by filmmakers in the future. This was an option being considered seriously by Severino who had a film called Planning Devachem. He said “There is no other way now to make any money from the movie I have. No private shows, no theatres, nothing. These platforms are the only hope for Konkani cinema”.      

Madhav Gad producer of Home Sweet Home 1 and 2 said in these times one could get away by making small movies in the budget of Rs. 10 lakhs to 20 lakhs but anything touching a crore was just gambling.

He said “It all depends on the technology one is interested in using meaning the camera. Everything else flows from there.  Once the movie is made getting the right time slot is very difficult. We want the 6.30 or 7.30 slot and we end up being given the 3.30 or 12.30 slot which means no one comes. OTT platforms are something we have to look and this virus has made things even worse for us. Nothing is moving. We have to look at options to survive”.

Perhaps the virus has shown a way to the industry to reach a larger audience. But for now. It’s a long interval.