FilmIndia (1948)

Iigust, 1948 FILMINDIA film fold, the fact remains that dearth of sufficient nee continues to be a major stumbling block in the i | of its stabilization and progress. I That the problem of finance is uppermost in hauntthe movie moguls as much as the man about trade is " e to it, goes without saying. That the new personnel :ntly (and rather unceremoniously) installed at the n of IMPPA affairs with Sardar Chandulal Shah as pilot, is no less aware of this, has been vaguely indi " *id by the latter's reported presidential address to tbat . r y, One had thought that at least the otherwise redoubt3 Sardar would begin his term of office by initiating a listic approach to the many and varied problems conriting the industry. A straightforward grip with the : nee problem, its pros and cons, would, to all intents purposes, have been in the fitness of things. But haps it is a sheer quackery to expect seasoned somn bulists and self-seeking die-hards to show any such : Ion or broad outlook. With no post-war improvement in quality worth the ie in sight yet, with the falling box-office values stargravely in the face and with the far from palatable erience of Congress Ministerial sympathy and supt serving as a regular damper, it is little wonder that big guns, some of whose mouths are still savoury with ir ill-gotten gains during the boom time, are becomreluctant to have more fingers in the pie and that big industrial magnates and capitalists are shying to _ loose their purses in the movie business with the re•l that a search for inexperienced "suckers" and scape ihubala and Ramsing have a peculiar way of looking •ach other through the corners of their eyes in Prahhat Film Company's forthcoming picture yet untitled. Sulochana C'.hatterji and Rehman provide man/ a romantic moment in "Veena", Jagat Pictures' maiden production. goats to have their stakes in the filmdom has already begun! There is. for instance, the striking and typical example of a local would-be producer who has been advertising, through various stunts, for a financier to come forward and help him complete his first independent-cumambitious offering. The fellow writes vaguely in the ad. that his picture is half completed and does not fail to exploit fully the names of two leading stars whom he claims to have bagged on sweeping remuneration. And what do you think is the amount which he finally agrees to accept for completing his film on being approached by unsuspecting little investors? Just anything from one lac to twenty-five thousand! Actually, the excuse that the film is half completed turns out to be grossly incorrect when the would-be financier desires to see that half length supposed to have been Bhof and is naively informed that, well, though the actual shooting is yet to begin, practically all the songhits by Miss So and So have been recorded and could, in fact, be mortgaged by way of security. No wonder the investor (unless he's an out and out dope) smells a rat and leaves the wretch alone in search of another sucker to lend him finance so as to meet the expenses of studio hire, stars' salaries etc., before he finally decides to wash everybody's hands off the whole joke ! In other words, this is how a band of inexperienced mushroom producers, with more pretentions than testi II