T-town slows down

Lack of financers for small films, no blockbusters and stalled film shootings seem to have hit Tollywood badly.
The beginning of the new decade hasn���������t really been exciting for Tollywood. It looks like Telugu film buffs are shrewd enough to thumb down run-of-the-mill stuff. The year began with a dud Maa Nanna Chiranjeevi. NTR Jr and Venkatesh ensured sensational openings to their films Adhurs and Namo Venkatesa respectively.
But neither films were exactly blockbusters. However, Sambo Siva Sambo, managed to break even, whereas Bindaas, became a hit (thanks to a shoe-string budget). ���������A good film made within the stipulated budget will work wonders and comedy is usually a safe bet,��������� says Kishore, a popular Kannada producer, who has resolved to settle down in T-town now. ���������Our big-budget extravaganza with Mahesh Babu and director Srinu Vaitla will roll from March and another film with comedy star Allari Naresh is in the pipeline,��������� he adds. With the audience sending mixed signals, local filmmakers haven���������t gone full throttle to launch too many films and seem to have adopted a wait-and-watch approach. The only exceptions being Shakti starring NTR Jr and Ileana. ���������It was an inauspicious time till now (moodam), I began three films post March 16. Besides Chandi and Mirchi, I���������ll start work on a thematic film to cater to the changing tastes of the audience,��������� says filmmaker M S Raju.
Another reason for Telugu dream merchants��������� wariness to shoot films, stem from the constant agitation and disruption on film sets by T-agitators. ���������Three big films ��������� the Siddharth-Shruti Haasan socio-fantasy, Allu Arjun���������s Vedham and Maryada Ramanna directed by Rajamouli ��������� were affected. Now we need to re-draw our schedules,��������� laments a well-known producer. Director Meher Ramesh who���������s currently shooting Shakti with NTR Jr and Ileana, lost some days in January after protestors disrupted shooting. ���������However, our 20-day shooting in Rajasthan is progressing briskly,��������� he says. Even shootings of Allu Arjun���������s Varudu encountered some interruptions. ���������Luckily, just a couple of days��������� work schedule was affected, so we need to shoot for five days in a city studio to complete our film,��������� says a source in the production house. Creative producer N M Pasha of the recently released Varun Sandesh starrer, didn���������t want to take any chances and chose to hire security personnel and ���������finish our work in the city,��������� he says. According to industry sources, production houses shelled out anything between Rs 50,000 to 1 lakh per day to have a security cordon around their sets. NTR Jr���������s Brindavanam was shot amid tight security in a college in the Old City region.
Adding to the woes of T-town, is the lack of buyers for non-star films. With more than 300-odd movies lying in cans and lack of financiers, the balance continues to be tilted towards the saleable superstars. ���������2010 is a non-happening one for us so far with only Leader and Ye Maaya Chesave doing well at the BO. Due to lack of financers, small films have no takers. But there are a few independent financers, so things will improve,��������� says director Chandra Siddharth.
Well, it would be heartening to see film studios bustling with activity and the film industry back on track again.
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