Hema Malini
Ready for a major revamp of NFDC

Hema Malini heads the neglected sick unit - the National Film Development Corporation. It is unlikely to be a cakewalk for her, as acting was. It is an uphill task to set things right because the NFDC was a headless outfit for nearly ten years. And it was left with not only losses amounting to Rs 10.57 crore in 1998-99 in addition to Rs 424 lakh which were written off in 1997-98, leaving its staff hugely discontented. No wonder the NFDC union smelled a rat and sent an SOS to the minister for I&B, Arun Jaitley, urging him to save the corporation from doom.

It is at this complex juncture that Hema Malini has taken over the helm of affairs at the NFDC, attending the first meeting of the board, drawn from I&B officials and heads of Film and Television Institute of India and National Film Archive of India to complete the quorum.

She has started off on the right note. The first thing that Hema Malini did on assuming office, was to pass the pay revision of the staff that has been pending since 1997. Those on the board were surprised by the amount of home work she had done before assuming office. She had even chosen a new managing director in Dipankar Mukhopadya, who has served in Press Information Bureau and in the I&B ministry as special officer.

Having won the admiration of the staff, Hema Malini is seriously studying what has gone wrong with the various departments that the corporation had set up for the production of films, distribution of its vast library of films, film imports as well as financing of theatres. She wants all the wrong done so far by the NFDC set right, to put it on a sound footing again.

Hema Malini is the third lady chairperson to be inducted in the government agencies belonging to the ministry of I&B. Her other colleagues are Asha Parekh, who heads the Central Board of Film Certification and Sai Paranjpe of the Children’s Film Society...

How do you propose to strengthen the NFDC which had incurred losses of more than Rs 10 crores in 1997-98?
It is true that in 1998-99 due to adverse market conditions and recessionary pressures in the media market as a whole, the NFDC had incurred a loss of Rs 10.57 crore. However, the situation has improved now with the corporation making a net profit of Rs 2.75 crore in 1999-2000.

What are your future plans with regard to producing films? Are you going to support art films or commercial ones?
With no budgetary support from the government, the NFDC has to operate with its own funds to strike a balance by producing commercially self-sustaining films without forgetting its developmental role. I have recently taken over the NFDC and it is premature to spell out the future course. Right now, the NFDC has 14 feature films on hand, in various stages of production, including joint productions with Doordarshan and the like. I would very much like the NFDC to make films that would not only bring recognition in India but also internationally. To achieve this, I will have to talk to a cross section of filmmakers to find out whether they have any project that would help the NFDC play a greater role in the making of films, subject of course to the approval of the board. I am not averse to commercial films but I don’t believe in making films for the sake of money. Films have to be socially significant and if they can bring both recognition and money, it helps the corporation to fund artistic films. We may go in for even foreign collaborations as we did in the past with Gandhi. Since Dr Mohan Agashe is on the board of directors, perhaps we may approach him to find out if there is talent among the FTII students or diploma holders who could make meaningful films.

How do you propose to improve the export of NFDC films and distribution of imported foreign films since both activities are far from satisfactory?
The working of both import and export of films has to be re-oriented, considering the marketing conditions. Once we streamline the marketing section, we will improve the export of home productions as well as films made with our finance as producers of those funded films may not be having the resources to exploit the films abroad.

The NFDC has been financing cinemas for the last so many years but it has failed to reserve the right of screening its films in those theatres even for a week in a year. What is your strategy?
That is true. It may have been due to lack of marketing strategy. Though NFDC has so far financed 131 theatres in various states, it has not been able to retain playing time for its films. I know pure art films may not run in regular theatres with a seating capacity of 1000 or more. But they can be shown in smaller cinemas, particularly in cities. I am sure there is a large section of discerning audiences yearning to see good films but there isn’t any regular theatre where they can see such films. I am looking for such cinemas in the cities so that good films can be released on a regular basis. I am exploring the possibility of taking cinemas with less seating capacity - say 300 seaters - on lease or tie-up with distributors who are interested in showing such films. For all these proposals, the sanction of the board is needed. I hope to carry the board with me. If needed, the NFDC can approach the various state governments to encourage multiplexes. The NFDC can join hands with multiplexes, if possible, in cities so that the NFDC’s films can be released in those smaller cinemas. All these options are being worked out.

Has the NFDC got enough money to carry out its activities in the field of production, distribution and exhibition?
I think so. Even if we find fewer funds of our own, we have to learn how to multiply the existing capital of Rs 14 crore. The former I&B minister, Sushma Swaraj, had given industry status to filmdom. Indian Banks Association (IBA) has also given its report on the feasibility of bank finance for production, distribution and exhibition. I am sure banks will not hesitate to fund our projects because the NFDC has the added advantage of being the government’s corporation and its accounts are transparent. Even if the government’s grant or funding is not available, we can raise the needed finances for various projects from the financial institutions.

When will the film on Dr BR Ambedkar be released?
We have almost finished negotiating with a distributor who will release the film all over India in seven languages in which they are dubbed. No doubt it has taken a long time in getting a proper distributor for the film but it has now been finalised and we are awaiting the government’s nod.

Considering that the ministry of social welfare had already financed the film to the tune of Rs 7 crore, and the government of Maharashtra provided another Rs 1.75 crore, why did the NFDC have to chip in with another Rs 70 lakh?
I do not know what happened before I took over the NFDC. But we have struck a good deal with a distributor whose name I do not want to disclose at the moment. He has promised to release the film all over India. We will see to it that the film is released with media hype and proper marketing strategy, because we have to safeguard the financial interests of both the central and state governments.

Have you outlined your future plans yet?
I am in frequent contact with a cross section of the film industry to which I belong and will meet industry representatives to find out what their expectations from the NFDC are. One thing’s for sure: a policy will have to be evolved to make the NFDC play a major role as the nodal agency between the government and the film industry. Wish us luck, we have a long way to go!

MSM Desai