Leading producers Dil Raju and C Kalyan are set to take on each other for the presidential post in the Telugu Film Chamber of Commerce. The much-awaited polls are going to be held on July 30. “Dil Raju served as vice president of the chamber in the past, while C Kalyan was ex-president. Hence the clash between two bigwigs is going to be exciting,” says a member.
Initially, 1200-odd producers resolved to elect a president unanimously and threw up the name of producer Ram Mohan Rao. Later, when C Kalyan stepped into the poll arena, Dil Raju was roped in since he is a very popular producer-distributor and could give some tough fight to C Kalyan. "It is true that we thought of electing our president unanimously but with more members showing interest to contest, elections became inevitable,” he adds.
Some members are feeling that Dil Raju has better chances of winning since he has assured to take Telugu cinema to next level after it gained recognition on world stage since he has been an active producer, exhibitor and distributor for the last 20 years. “He is even thinking of negotiating with digital providers Qube and UFO to reduce the rates in theatres which are now pegged at Rs 12,000 per week and also plans to help small producers with better releases,” says one member. While C Kalyan panel members claim that they are very close to 300-odd small producers. “We are quite accessible to small producers and could resolve their woes much faster, unlike others. We will also reiterate the demand for 5th show for small movies in 1000-odd single theatres across two Telugu states since small films are slowly dying,” he adds.
Interestingly, these are not direct presidential elections, rather members first elect ‘executive members’ from four sectors comprising producers, exhibitors, distributors and studio owners. "The 3,000-odd members from four sectors elect 44 executive members who in turn elect the president along with four sector chairpersons, unlike other bodies," informs another member.
