FilmIndia (1946)

.March, 1946 FILMINBI A The Donkey doesn't seem to mind Mehru riding across in "Hai Jani," a picture of Hilal Film Corp. These remarks, however, do not apply to the Baroda State which is considered as one of our progressive States. The news, that the Gaekwar of Baroda refused to grant permission to a film producer when the latter wanted to utilize the Gaekwar's palace in Bombay for film shooting, comes, therefore, as a great surprise. We understand that a written guarantee, that nothing in the palace gardens would be spoiled, was given by the producer and ye: the Gaekwar is reported to have refused permission. Film producers who strain to get as much realism in their films as possible are thus robbed of their ambition by such unsympa'hetic rulers of our States. Though many a huge set can be constructed in the studios these days, still it is impossible to build a huge garden set as good as the real ones we see attached to some of the pleasure palaces of our princes. The natural desire of the producer to shoot his sequences on the actual location can therefore be understood by all producers and lovers of film art. But the Gaekwar evidently could not understand this problem in the sympathetic manner in which the producer had expected him to, even though his pleasure palace in Bombay remains deserted for months every year. If this is the treatment and co-operation our national industries are going to get from even supposedly progressive rulers the future of our industries is not very rosy. Perhaps this boorish, dog-in-the-manger attitude of our princes is one of the reasons why our princes are unanimously unpopular. Take the story of this young Gaekwar who has inhe rited millions in money, not to mention a large number of palaces, with his right to the gadi of Baroda. He doesn't stretch his little finger to help the Indian film industry, while he sinks millions in buying horse-flesh in England, as if the Sport of Kings is going to provide bread for the millions starving in his country. What would have been his exact loss if he had permitted a few film producers to use his palace gardens which are hardly, used by him round the year? But the petty potentate would not hear of it perhaps for petty personal reasons. In Free India, are we to expect help and sympathy from such princes who waste millions on horse-flesh, give a cold shoulder to our industries and make merry when millions starve before their very eyes.: The earlier these princes are chased out of their undeserved inheritance the better for our people and our country. In the present democratic times it does sound criminal that one human being should enjoy all the good things of life through accident of birth while millions should die of want and hunger. It will be a good day for India when some of these princely fortunes are equitably divided among the more needy ones. AND EVEN DR. AMBEDKAR The Hon. Dr. Ambedkar, our Labour Member, is a great scholar of statistics and a man of great personal efficiency. We were surprised, therefore, when he chose to label The Abdulla Fazalbhoy Technical Institute of Bom bay as a communal institution run for Muslim benefit, whilst giving information to Dr. Sir Ziauddin Ahmed on the Central Assembly floors. We hasten to correct this wrong notion of the Hon. Member. And the best way to do so in case of a man who firmly believes in statistics is by giving the communal statistics of the candidates trained by the Institute during the last nine years of its career. SESSION H. M. P. C. Total July 1937 to June 1938 64 14 15 11 104 July 1938 to June 1939 136 18 7 29 190 July 1939 to June 1940 145 26 10 23 204 July 1940 to June 1941 155 11 17 20 203 July 1941 to June 1942 120 14 16 24 174 June 1942 to March 1943 91 13 7 25 136 June 1943 to March 1944 291 58 33 46 428 June 1944 to March 1945 178 24 31 37 270 June 1945 to March 1946 191 21 41 33 286 H — Hindus, M — Mohammedan. P — Parsis, C — Christians. The statistics above ought to show how entirely wrong was the information given by the Honorable Member for Labour. And it is not too much to expect from Dr. Ambedkar, because the Member is honourable, an apology for his unconscious mistake which has created a wrong impression about the Institute, which is run by an old illustrious institution like the St. Xavier's College. DRASTIC LAW REQUIRED The immense popularity of the film as an entertainment for the masses has given rise to many sharp practices not only in the fields of production and distribution but also in the consumer's field of exhibition. 13