The dispute between the Kerala Film Producers’ Association (KFPA) and the multiplex player PVR-INOX over virtual print fee (VPF) has been resolved.
The issue was settled following talks held between representatives of the KFPA and the company in Kochi on April 19 and 20. B. Rakesh, secretary of the association, said screening of Malayalam films would begin at screens in Forum Mall in Kochi and Miraj Cinemas in Kozhikode. “We have also decided not to pay VPF from January 2025 onwards in view of the high rates asked by the digital service providers,” he said. VPF is the payment made by the producer for theatres to acquire digital cinema equipment.
The multiplex chain decided to stop screening Malayalam films after the KFPA demanded that films must be released at screens in the malls at Kochi and Kozhikode at a low VPF using content mastered at the PDC (Producers’ Digital Cinema), a facility promoted by the producers. The PDC was launched after the producers and distributors found the VPF being charged by existing content providers to screen the movies in the theatres too high.
The differences widened after the Film Employees Federation of Kerala (FEFKA) threatened to launch protests in front of the screens against the decision by the company to stop screening of Malayalam movies. The decision had affected the box-office prospects of director Jithu Madhavan’s Aavesham, Vineeth Sreenivasan’s Varshangalkku Shesham and Ranjith Sankar’s Jai Ganesh released in connection with the Vishu festival. They had also stopped screening the previously released Malayalam films, including director Blessy’s Aadujeevitham, A.D. Girish’s Premalu, and Chidambaram’s Manjummel Boys.
The KFPA, FEFKA and Kerala Film Distributors’ Association took a position that they would not cooperate with PVR-INOX unless it compensated the producers’ loss on account of not releasing the festival releases and taking down the Malayalam movies which were already being screened. The tiff was resolved following the intervention made by M.A. Yusuff Ali, Managing Director of LuLu Group. The company’s malls in Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram have several screens of the multiplex chain.
