NFDC merger; Film Division of India, National Film Archives of India,  and two more bodies come under the corporation!

2023 has just started and it has already brought a huge change in the Indian entertainment business as the Films Division, the National Film Archive of India, and two more bodies have merged with National Films Development Corporation (NFDC). As per the reports, the Films Division, the Children’s Film Society of India, the Directorate of Film Festivals, and the National Film Archive of India have come under NFDC now.

Talking about the same, Ravinder Bhakar, MD of NFDC said, “The cabinet took the decision long back, and the merger was formally completed on December 31. Now, the step is going to increase the transparency in the system with effective utilization of the resources.”

Ravinder Bhakar, MD of NFDC

“There will be multiple things which were handled by these bodies and showed a sign of duplication. That is what we want to avoid and get better utilization of the sources. With the bodies coming under one umbrella, they all will be working for the welfare and development of the Indian film industry. As of now, effective deliverables are not coming,” he further explained.

For those who don’t know, the decision of the merger was first announced in December 2020 by the Union government but as celebs like Naseeruddin Shah, Nandita Das, and Anand Patwardhan voiced against the merger it was a halt. It was reported that around 1,539 persons including actors, filmmakers, and other members of the Indian cinema sent letters to the ministry in December 2021 against the government’s decision for the merger.

This time too, many celebs have voiced their opinion against the merger, and filmmaker Anurag Kashyap has even termed it the“black day for Indian cinema.”