MUMBAI: Zee chairman Subhash Chandra has revealed Zee Telefilms' plans to support the Marathi film industry financially. Chandra was speaking on the occasion of Alpha Marathi's Apla Alpha Awards ceremony held on 11 August.

"Though initially there had been doubts on the potential of a Marathi satellite channels when we started Alpha Marathi, the effort has finally met with success. In this context, we also have plans to support the Marathi film industry financially," he said.

Marathi film industry has welcomed Chandra's announcement. Talking to Indiantelevision.com, actor-producer Sachin Pilgaonkar offers, "I feel very good. This is a great gesture from Chandra."
Pilgaonkar refused to comment further on the development saying the industry is waiting for Zee's final plans.

"We have to see the kind of policy Zee comes up with. Are they going to co-produce, provide financial assistance or is it going to be world rights controlling. So we have to wait for the final decision from Zee," he said.

Sources close to Indiantelevision.com inform that Zee has plans to provide two kinds of support: 1) Financially supporting producers who approach Zee, 2) Providing marketing support to the movies through Alpha Marathi. The final deal is believed to be under preparation.

Valued at Rs 100 million, the Marathi film industry churns out 20-25 films per year on an average. According to industry sources, the film industry is now doing better as compared to the past years with more and more filmmakers starting to show their inclination to experiment.