Campaign against English titles for Tamil films
- IndiaGlitz, [Saturday,September 25 2004]
A Tamil Nadu political outfit has come out against English titles being given to Tamil films.
According to the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), forming part of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in New Delhi, their leader S. Ramadoss has, in a recent meeting, persuaded leaders of Tamil film industry to drop such titles.
The PMK has been objecting to such titles as well as glamorization of smoking and drinking in films.
The campaign against smoking had brought the party into direct confrontation with super star Rajnikanth.
Many successful Tamil films have had English titles like "Jeans" (which also had a Hindi version), "Duet", "Autograph" and "4 Friends" (a re-make of Malayalam "4 the People"). The latest hit with an English title is "New".
The PMK and the Dalit Panthers led by R. Thirumavalavan are part of the Tamil Protection Movement, which has been negotiating with the filmdom to drop English titles for Tamil films.
Industry sources, however, expect the campaign to fizzle out.
While the language of tiles cannot be legally enforced, they point out, the campaign has no cultural sanction either.
The state, they recall, has witnessed a long anti-Hindi agitation, but never an anti-English one of the kind led by Rammanohar Lohia in the Hindi-speaking states.