A general body meeting of the Kerala Film Exhibitors Federation scheduled in Kochi on Tuesday may ease the crisis that brought the Malayalam film industry to a grinding halt, though the parties concerned are sticking to their guns. An unofficial meeting between the federation, the combine of ‘A’ class cinemas, and the Kerala Film Producers Association and the Kerala Film Distributors Association here on Thursday failed to break the ice, with the stakeholders sticking to their stance.
The dispute between the exhibitors, on one side, and the producers and the distributors, on the other, over sharing of revenue from the cinemas had forced the postponement of the release of four Malayalam releases during Christmas.
Satyan Anthikad’s Jomonte Suvisheshangal , Jibu Jacob’s Munthirivallikal Thalirkumbol , Jay K’s Ezra , and Siddique’s Fukri are yet to hit the screens as the crisis spilled over to the new year.
“The federation representatives stuck to their demand and we were left with no option but to walk out of today’s meeting.
A solution seems a distant possibility,” said G. Suresh Kumar, president of the producers’ association, after Thursday’s meeting.
Two members on the federation’s advisory board participated in the parleys instead of P.V. Basheer Ahamed, president of the Kerala Film Exhibitors’ Federation.
P.V. Basheer Ahamed, president of the Kerala Film Exhibitors’ Federation, said the exhibitors would not compromise on the demand for enhancing their revenue share from 40 to 50 per cent.
