In a big step toward promoting filmmaking in the State and providing local talents a global canvas, Chief Minister Raghubar Das on Friday announced that the State would host National Film Festival next year. He also directed officials to start construction of Film City, which is proposed at Patratu, on war footing.
“If everything moves in a planned way, the National Film Festival will be held in March-April, 2017 in Ranchi, or Jamshedpur,” said a senior official of Information and Public Relations Department. He added that a meeting regarding this had already taken place with NFDC.
While meeting with newly formed Jharkhand Film Technical Advisory Committee (JFTAC) Chairman and veteran actor Anupam Kher on Friday, the CM also assured that he would speak to Central authorities for starting a direct flight on Mumbai-Ranchi-Mumbai route, a request made by Kher. Das also assured Kher to renovate all old theatres in the city and across the State and to develop necessary infrastructure for film making.
Elaborating more on National Film Festival, IPRD Director Awadhesh Kumar Pandey said that the idea was floated with National Film Development Corporation of India limited (NFDC), a subsidiary of Central Information and Broadcasting Ministry, on which the latter agreed to take things forward. “Now it is all on NDFC about the format and scale of the event,” he added.
Earlier, Kher presided over first meeting of JFTAC and took some concrete decisions to take things forward. “The Committee has unanimously accepted my proposal to have at least two, or three female members in it and we would start necessary process for it as soon as possible,” said Kher after presiding over the meeting.
Name of female committee members would be proposed by existing members to Information and Public Relations Department along with their full bio-data and including works and achievements.