Chennai, June 3 (IANS) The South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday expressed its heartfelt gratitude to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin for accepting its request to reduce the Local Body Entertainment Tax on films from eight per cent to four per cent.

In a statement that it issued on Tuesday, the South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce said that reduction of the Local Body Entertainment Tax had long been a consistent plea from the Tamil film industry and that it took the initiative to bring this matter to the attention of the Tamil Nadu government.

Pointing out that Chief Minister had now reduced the tax from 8 per cent to four per cent, the SIFCC said that it sincerely thanked Chief Minister M K Stalin, Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, and Minister for Information and Publicity M.P. Saminathan.

“This decision by the Tamil Nadu Government stands as a great boon to the Tamil film industry. There is no doubt that this move will further the growth and strengthen the position of Tamil cinema. Therefore, once again, on behalf of the entire Tamil film industry, we extend our sincere thanks to the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu,” it said.

The decision to slash the Local Body Entertainment Tax, which comes in response to long-standing appeals from the film fraternity, has been widely welcomed by producers, distributors, and industry bodies. Each year, more than 1,000 films are released across Tamil Nadu, and the eight per cent entertainment tax – added on top of the GST- was often cited as a burden, especially for small and medium-budget films.

Members of the industry have repeatedly pointed out that the high tax structure was adversely affecting their ability to recover production and distribution costs, particularly in the case of low-budget ventures. Now, the state government’s move to halve the tax is being hailed as a timely relief.

The Film Employees Federation of South India (FEFSI) expressed its heartfelt gratitude to Chief Minister M.K. Stalin for heeding the industry’s plea.

In a statement, FEFSI said that the reduction would help revive the struggling sector and provide much-needed encouragement to smaller filmmakers.

However, theatre owners have expressed a more measured response.

Tirupur Subramaniam, a leading distributor, theatre owner, and former president of the Tamil Nadu Theatre Owners and Exhibitors’ Association, welcomed the government’s intent but clarified that the reduction in entertainment tax would not lead to any cut in ticket price.

–IANS

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