Mani Ratnam’s Raavan will be released in 24 selected theaters in Karnataka.
The president of Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC), Vasant Kumar Patil said that the film, titled Raavanan in Tamil, will have a restricted release and said that “a decision has been taken to follow the existing policy of allowing non-Kannada films in a stipulated number of theatres.”
While the decision will not be binding in the other two distribution areas, it will be implemented in old Mysore distribution area, which is the southern part of the state.
Big Cinemas is scheduled to release both versions of the film on June 18.
Big Cinemas has said that the chamber should treat Raavan as two different films, and should allow the release in 48 theatres or more.
In a letter to KFCC, Big Cinemas requested, “Raavan is a hugely mounted film and we would like to seek some relief from Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce to liberalise its policy of restricting the release in a fixed number of theatres in Karnataka.”
To protect the Kannada film industry, the KFCC does not allow non-Kannada films to screen in more than 24 theatres.
Raavan stars Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai and South Indian actor, Vikram.
