Pune cops miffed about having to keep data on how many Marathi movies are played

The report must also include instances where people have complained about lack of Marathi movies at the cinema halls and whether any action has been taken in that regard. Representational Image

For the past few days, the Maharashtra police have been spending time at the movies, not for leisure, but to gather data on how many Marathi movies have been screened in the state.

They now have to file a report on the same and submit it to the state home department. This came about after Pune-based Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Medha Kulkarni alleged that Marathi movies are facing discrimination at multiplexes, not being given enough time slots.

ON December 21, 2017, Kulkarni had written a letter to the state cultural ministry as well as Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, claiming Marathi movies are being discriminated against and aren't being shown as per the norms in multiplexes.

Following the letter, the Pune police received a notification on March 23 from the state home department. Based on this, the Maharashtra Director General of Police has issued a notification to all the commissioner and superintendent offices and asked them to gather data on how many Marathi movies have been showcased in how many shows.

Kulkarni told mid-day, "Most of the time, both Hindi and Marathi movies release on the same day. But Hindi as well as Hollywood and Tollywood movies are given more importance than Marathi films. Several important Marathi movies are released but they are neglected. I had raised this issue with the CM, and the cultural and home ministries."

She added, "Earlier, few people from the Marathi movie industry had also aired their grievances and we had also agitated about it. It has been noticed that Marathi movies are not screened during prime time or peak hours. Being in Maharashtra, our language needs to be given preference."

The DGP's notification mentions that as per the norms, 124 Marathi movies need to be screened annually in cinema halls and asks cops to gather data on such films shown in their jurisdiction and send a report to their superiors at the earliest. The report must also include instances where people have complained about lack of Marathi movies at the cinema halls and whether any action has been taken in that regard. Three officers from each police station have to be engaged in this work in the day time.

Why is this our duty?
But how has this fared with the cops? A Pune police officer said, "I do not understand how this falls under our duty as there are entertainment officers attached to the revenue department who can pursue this. From the past two days, we have been approaching the multiplexes in our area to gather information. Three police officers have been working on this. We are already overburdened with investigations as well as maintaining law and order. But we are compiling the data now." Joint Commissioner of Police (law and order) Ravindra Kadam refused to comment, while other superior officers remained unavailable.

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