An expert panel headed by renowned filmmaker Malayalam Adoor Gopalakrishnan has recommended the state government to stop giving subsidy to Malayalam movies with English titles. The panel also has recommended Kerala government to make titles in the mother tongue mandatory for financial support from the State.
The panel comprising ace senior filmmakere Shaji N. Karun, movie producer Suresh Kumar and former cultural minister Pandalam Sudhakaran, has observed that opting English titles for Malayalam movies has become a 'fashion' among many filmmakers. The trend would adversely affect the prestigious status of Malayalam language which has been recently awarded classical language status. Not just that English titles to Malayalam movies would only help to create some sort of a distaste among the upcoming generation towards their mother tongue.
The panel strogly recommended the state government to immediately take steps to restore the eroding pride of Malayalam and discourage financial assistance to the ventures those could hamper the repute of the language. The panel has pointed out that majority of the about 80 movies released in the last six months, including some blockbusters, had English titles.
The panel has also said in its report that in states like Tamil Nadu, it was mandatory to have titles in their regional language to get state subsidy. The committee also suggested enhancing the subsidies for movies those receive recognitions at the state, national and international levels. The committee is expected to submit its report to the government by first week of August this year .
