AP govt levies tax on Telangana vehicles
‘They Killed Middle-Class Cinema’
..says who? So says director Teja. Speaking to media people, he was rather vocal about his thoughts and blamed the heroes, producers and media for killing middle class cinema and supporting big films.
He said that Telugu film-makers only use two stories as their base and whatever they do, they mix and match the two for their films.
Either a normal hero who has a scintillating past or the hero lands in villain’s house and steals his daughter from right under his nose… the industry is not looking beyond these stories, says he.
And when some film-makers are trying to make small films to introduce change, the audiences are not encouraging them, says Teja.
Well, Teja sometimes it is better to be the change than talk about change. What say?
Megastar Floored By Mani Ratnam’s ‘OK Bangaram’
Mumbai: Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has heaped praise on filmmaker Mani Ratnam’s latest Telugu entertainer “OK Bangaram”, saying the film is told in an endearing way, capturing the essence of the changing times.
The 72-year-old took to his official blog to share his views about the film after watching it with his daughter Shweta Nanda.
“Shweta and I get to see Mani Ratnam’s new and fresh Tamil film at a trial, and it is a sweet and endearing story of love among the young. Fresh and with a sense of the changing times, in keeping with the sensibilities of this generation, it shows compassion and example with great dexterity,” he posted on srbachchan.tumblr.com.
Touted to be Ratnam’s comeback to the romance genre, the film is set in Mumbai and follows the story of a young couple Aadi and Tara who decide to live together even before marriage.
The “Paa” actor lauded film’s star cast – Dulquer Salmaan and Nitya Menen – for portraying the role with conviction.
“Values are not lost in the practices that this generation may desire, but sufficient understanding on both parts is beautifully portrayed by two young performers who play the lead.
“They are a delight to watch – the boy, Mammootty’s son…Mammootty the mega star of Malayalam Cinema in Kerala…and equally a sprightly love interest in his opposite number…a young lady of enormous verve,” he shared.
“OK Bangaram”, which has been raved about by critics and audiences alike, minted over Rs.14 crore at the box office worldwide in the first four days since its release on April 17.
KCR Fails On This Front Too
The recent allegation against Chandrababu Naidu is that he is showing a special preference to his constituency Kuppam in according developmental projects. There were similar complaints against Kiran Kumar Reddy and YS Rajasekhar Reddy regarding Chittoor and Kadapa districts.
The point is that irrespective of the holistic development of the State, the Chief Ministers were at least concerned about their home constituencies. Not KCR!
Statehood for Telangana yielded a bitter crop for farmers in chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s home district, Medak.
Eighty nine farmers have committed suicide since June 2014, as per the district crime records bureau. Of these, only 33 farmers have received compensation from the government so far.
All the farmers on the death roll were small and marginal land holders -the very lot who Chandrasekhar Rao had vowed to uplift.
With KCR least bothered about their plight, the High Court has been forced to intervene. In what could come as a huge relief to the distressed farmers, the high court asked the government to announce a suitable package for ryots to put an end to the suicide spree.
Also, the court had told the government to conduct a fresh inquiry into the suicides of farmers in Medak district since 1998 and adequately compensate the families.
The woes of the victims’ families are far from over. They complained that they have been seeking an audience with the chief minister for compensation but in vain. They also said that neither the chief minister nor irrigation minister Harish Rao has paid them a visit so far even though their villages are very near to KCR’s farm house.
It’s A Habit With Naidu!
In a classic case of financial mismanagement, the Andhra Pradesh government went short of funds and ended up availing an overdraft from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) as it had paid Rs 2,067 crore to industrialists in one go in March.
As a result, it ended up paying Rs 8.01 crore as interest to the RBI for Rs 5,000 crore it availed as overdraft for five days.
Highlighting the mismanagement, finance officials point to the last minute release of Rs 2,067 crore as incentives to industrialists. Though these incentives have been pending for more than a decade, the TDP government released the funds in one lot without considering the consequences.
The incentives include reimbursements of value-added tax, stamp duty and power subsidy. Most industries which received the incentives are allegedly close to the TDP government and also supported the party during the general elections.
Textile, spinning mills, sugar factories, jute, tobacco and aqua units are said to have benefited most with the last minute release of funds.
About 3,000 units received their dues in March. Under criticism from the opposition for releasing the funds in one lot, Naidu government said that the situation was inevitable as these were funds pending for more than a decade. Hence they were forced to go in for an overdraft, says the TDP.
Had it not been for the poor finances of the State, they wouldn’t have needed an overdraft is their contention. But this is not correct.
During the 10 year Congress rule, there was not even a single instance of overdraft whereas prior to that during the TDP regime, they had availed of the overdraft on many occasions. So, this is not a one- time thing with Naidu. It is a habit with him.
Harish Missing In Action At Plenary
The first plenary of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi after achieving Statehood for Telangana was held in Hyderabad with a lot of pomp and hype on Friday.
Almost all the Cabinet ministers vied with one another to hog the media limelight on the huge stage.
However, one person who remained quiet and a silent participant was Irrigation Minister T Harish Rao.
While everybody was seen on the dais jostling with one another to felicitate party president K Chandrasekhar Rao on his re-election, Harish Rao was conspicuous by his absence. Though the TRS president was lavishing praises on Mission Kakatiya programme, Harish Rao was not seen in the media glare.
In fact, Harish Rao used to play active role in every party activity – be it a dharna or a rally or a public meeting in the past. However, this time, he was deliberately kept out of the arrangements.
And a sulking Harish Rao remained a silent spectator at the plenary. He could not be located for most of the time at the plenary.
Neither senior party leaders nor the activists from Siddipet had no clue as to what had happened to Harish. Definitely, there is something fishy about the minister!
