The Film Producers Association has urged the government to take steps to revive film industry "otherwise there would be complete Indian cultural" domination over Pakistan and Pakistani artists would have no option but to shift to other countries to earn their livelihood.
Talking to Business Recorder here on Sunday, a former chairman of Film Producers Association Shaukat Zaman said that the film industry has collapsed to such an extent that there are now only 15 cinema houses in proper and good condition in the country--5 in Karachi, 5 in Lahore, 2 each in Multan and Rawalpindi and one in Faisalabad--leaving hundreds of thousands people jobless.
He said that the film industry not only sets the cultural trends, moulds and influences the minds of the people, educates and changes the behaviours , customs, and traditions of the community but is also used as an effective propaganda tool by nations..
He said that in India and the United States, film industry is the major source of foreign exchange earnings whereas in Pakistan only 6 to 7 films are being produced annually, resultantly Pakistani viewers has no choice but to see cheap, propaganda-loaded and vulgar Indian films.
He regretted that over the past 40 years no government took any serious steps to use full potential of this visual but very effective medium. The situation has come to such a decimal stage that the Government has not held the National Films Awards during the past two years.
He said the government should allow duty-free import of film making and screening machinery, set up an academy for the training of new artistes, writers, directors, cameramen, musicians, and technicians, and involve the representatives of film producers and artistes associations in the policy making process, give respect to the artistes and they be sent on goodwill missions abroad.
He demanded that import and screening of Indian films be regularised as despite the government ban, Pakistani market is flooded with the third-rate Indian films on DVD and CD and the cable operators are showing these pirated films to the Pakistani viewers without any check.