The
Odisha government
’s recent announcement that it plans to redevelop the nearly four decades old
Kalinga Studio
has been hailed by the
Odia film and TV
fraternity. Once the pride of the state’s film industry, the studio was devastated by the 1999 super cyclone and has since been a mere shadow of its glorious self.
So when the state government announced a `200-crore package to turn the studio complex into a state-of-the-art film and entertainment hub last week, everyone praised the move. “When there’s good infrastructure in our city, we’ll definitely shoot here. I’ll surely shoot my films here also once the revamped studio is ready. It will make things easier for us and also help us cut production cost,” said filmmaker
Nila Madhab Panda.
Filmmaker Gadadhar Puty, who shot films in the studio in the ’80s and ’90s, called it a welcome step by the government. “I shot my first film in the studio after passing out from FTII Pune in 1982. All the geniuses of that time, including
Nirad Mohapatra and
Manmohan Mohapatra
, used the studio to make award-winning films. Once the studio is revamped, today’s filmmakers have to come up with good stories to restore the lost glory of
Odia cinema
,” he said.
Kuna Tripathy, chairman of
Odisha Film Development Corporation
(OFDC), who was present in the meeting, said the plan is to develop the studio as one of the best filmmaking destinations in the country as well as a tourist attraction. “The focus will be on retaining as much greenery inside the campus by landscaping and creating eco-friendly structures. There’ll be integrated structures, like shooting zones outside administrative buildings. We also plan to retain 90% of the existing infrastructure to retain the studio’s legacy,” he said, adding that it will save producers’ money, as they won’t have to visit other states to shoot their films.
While welcoming the move, filmmaker
Tapas Sargharia said there’s also a need to increase movie theatres in the state. “We are making films
regularly. There are several indoor shooting halls and for outdoor shoots, we go to various picturesque locations. What we really need are more theatres,” he said.
Box
KALINGA STUDIO FACTSThe studio was set up in 1982
It attracted filmmakers from all over the country
The OFDC is its custodian
The studio stands on a plot of around 25 acres
Currently, the studio has one recording lab, editing lab, indoor shooting space, garden, temple and some cottages
Minor repair and renovations were done in 2014-15
The studio is generating revenue of around Rs 4 lakh per month since September 2020
THREE ZONES: It was decided in the meeting that the new studio would be developed into three main zones
Zone 1 (7.45 acres): This zone will have facilities like indoor shooting floors, central country yard, film-tech zone, commercial space and cafeteria. The film-tech zone will have the administrative buildings, equipment store house, prop warehouse, sound recording and dubbing studio, editing lab, animation lab etc
Zone-2 (9.95 acres): This zone will have outdoor shooting facilities, shooting locales, theme-based gardens, kids’ zones, castle view, snow world and adventure land
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