The Small Screen Producers and Actors Association of Tamil Nadu has once again sharpened its attack against Tamil channels for telecast of dubbed serials.
Producers from the local industry have argued in favour of a ban on dubbed content, claiming it results in loss of opportunities for the local television industry.
“More than half the prime-time slots are taken up by dubbed content. Many technicians have lost jobs and opportunities,” says actor and producer Radhikaa Sarathkumar, who heads Radaan Media Works, which is one of the important producers in the Tamil television space.
She points out: “In Karnataka, dubbed content isn’t allowed, while in Hyderabad, there is minimal dubbed content.”
Television channels seem to favour dubbed content for two main reasons: it is cheap, and it gives an opportunity to provide viewers with quality content from around the world in local languages.
A few activists, who advocate language equality, however, are in support of the telecast of dubbed content. Vasant Shetty, a member of ‘Promote Linguistic Equality in India’, criticises the ban enforced on Kannada channels by the local industry. He argues that it impedes the growth of Kannada language.
“There are lakhs of Kannadigas who may want to hear a Disney character speaking in Kannada, or a Discovery or Animal Planet programme on Amazon forests in Kannada, or watch Avatar 3D in Kannada. Why should they be denied their rightful access to all these in a language of their choice?” he says.
Reality show
creates record
In a competitive television environment, reality shows strive to surpass other programmes with new concepts.
One such feat has earned a television dance show a Guinness record title. We are talking of the 10th season of Maanada Mayilada dance show that is being aired on Kalaignar TV.
Several interesting milieus have been set for the participants to showcase their talents and enthral audiences.
Recently, the team attempted to recreate an Ames room, which is a distorted room used to create an optical illusion, for one of its episodes.
According to sources, the feat that was shot last week was recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records. An illusion was created in such a way as to show characters in different dimensions.
The studio was designed with an appropriate backdrop and shot with a single camera.
When the performers change positions, they will appear to have shrunk or become taller to the viewers.
Lucia Sinigaliesi, the official adjudicator of Guinness World Records from London, handed over the certificate to choreographer Kala, the show’s director, and P. Amirtham, director of Kalaignar TV.
The show is slated to be aired in May.
(Reporting by Udhav Naig and K. Lakshmi)
