Telangana cinema, anyone?

Will the formation of a separate Telangana state usher in a new wave of Telugu���er, Telangana cinema? Well, filmmakers and technicians from the region believe so and reckon the formation of Telangana Cinema Force (TCF) to be a step in that direction. Protecting the rights of film personnel from the region and paving the way for the emergence of a cinema reflecting the true aspirations, and asserting the cultural identity of the region, rank high on the agenda of the newly-formed committee.
Director N Shankar, one of brains behind the TCF believes it is a natural progression. ���Telugu cinema has traditionally been dominated by filmmakers and technicians from the Andhra region and the culture of coastal Andhra has been presented as a unified Telugu culture. In reality though, Telangana region has a unique history and culture of its own that is independent of the other regions of Andhra Pradesh. the formation of a separate Telangana state has provided a great opportunity for the people of the region to assert their identity through cinema,��� explains, N Shankar.
Nandi Award winning film historian, Hari Krishna Mamidi reckons ���cinematic assertion of the Telangana identity��� is necessary, saying, ���Many traditional Telangana folk art forms like Oggu Katha, Sindhu Yakshaganam etc., have been in a state of steady decline for years. The Telangana identity has been perpetuated mainly through art and poetry, but they have never found space in mainstream Telugu cinema. So it becomes imperative for the new Telangana state to safeguard, reinvent and redefine the native cultural and artistic traditions.���
The contribution of Telangana region to the evolution of Telugu and Indian cinema is pretty impressive, points out Harikrishna adding, ���Films like Ankur, Mandi, Bazar, Rangula Kala, Maa Bhomi, Dasi, etc., based on the Telangana way of life, have won national and international acclaim for Telugu cinema. Be it the Razakar movement or Telangana Raithanga Sayudha Poratam, there are many important milestones in Indian history that originated in Telangana. So there is no dearth of stories of heroes like Komaram Bheem, Chakali Ailamma and Doddi Komarayya to be told.���
However, not everyone is as buoyed at the prospect of a new kind of cinema emerging. Film scholar, Kathi Mahesh Kumar is one of them. ���Telugu cinema by default has become an escapist indulgence and shouldn���t change too much. Our cinema hasn���t conjured any worthwhile, academic depiction of our history, whether Andhra, Telangana or
Rayalaseema, in the last 80 years. So what���s the guarantee that the formation of Telangana will change anything?��� ���If anything, Telangana cinema runs the risk of turning out to be poor shadows of popular cinema. After all, the taste for cinema doesn���t change much in the different regions. Even in the last 13 years of the Telangana movement, the political parties never made an effort to line up good filmmakers to make meaningful movies about the struggle. They never even endorsed well made documentaries in their propaganda,��� questions Mahesh.
N Shankar also shares the same concerns. ���The government���s role is going to be crucial. If we follow the same corporate model of Telugu cinema, things will remain the same. It is the responsibility of Telnagana-based filmmakers to come up with a more equitable model of cinema.���