Straight answers

<div class="section1"><div class="Normal"><span style="" font-weight:="" bold="">Saawan Kumar</span> newly-elected resident of Indian Motion Picture Producers'' Association (IMPPA) on the agenda for his tenure<br /><br /><span style="" font-weight:="" bold="">You became IMPPA President after Smita Thackeray refused to continue. Is the job more taxing with internal bickerings and other movie associations coming to the fore?</span><br /><br />Thackeray refused a third term as she is busy with several social service activities.But she has done an excellent job and I am trying to fulfill our priorities, whatever time I get in this post. The job is not burdensome if you take along people with different ideologies. IMPPA is the mother association. Some left maybe because there was high-handedness and ego problems. <br /><br />I''m trying to bring them together under one umbrella. Why should we have ego issues when the posts are honorary? We can discuss common problems affecting the industry. When unity is broken, the common cause looks distant.<br /><br /><span style="" font-weight:="" bold="">What are the areas you''re concentrating on?</span><br /><br />Piracy is the biggest of all. I''m leading a delegation to New Dehi, where along with members of the Film Federation of India (FFI) we''ll meet Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad to discuss the matter. There is no gain in raiding a poor hawker selling pirated cassettes. If piracy is to be checked, we should attack it at its roots.<br /><br /><span style="" font-weight:="" bold="">It''s alleged that IMPPA failed to help artistes who''ve fallen on bad times. Dadsaheb Phalke''s daughter is an example.</span><br /><br />If people with genuine causes approach us, we will help them as much as we can.<br /><br /><span style="" font-weight:="" bold="">Many producers are making multiplex movies, but they aren''t doing good business.</span><br /><br />No multiplex can salvage a bad movie. The multiplex craze isn''t the same as before. How can you expect to watch a movie like <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Boom </span>with your family? Films which keep Indian culture and traditions in mind will always work. Stars don''t matter.<br /><br /><span style="" font-style:="" italic="">nirmal.mishra@timesgroup.com</span></div> </div>