TN govt concerned about OTT releases

In what can be considered a statement which would have gladdened the hearts of Tamil industry representatives, State Minister for Information and Publicity, Kadambur Raju has said films releasing on OTT platforms would end up being a revenue loss for the State government.

In an interaction with local media in Tuticorin in southern Tamil Nadu, he is reported to have said that the release of ' PonmagalVandhal' was par for the course as it was during the lockdown phase. Now that things are looking up to be normal, the government wishes that this trend does not continue.

Adding on, Raju said that the three stakeholders – producers, exhibitors and distributors- have to look into this and also involve the crew if it involves a big star to take care of the market requirements. The government would end up losing the GST on the film releases and also the entertainment tax, which is among the lowest in the country, he informed. Now the ball is in the court of the film industry bigwigs.