"In the last few years it has become possible to release a film in multiple languages simultaneously to cater to different linguistic audiences due to improved dubbing and subtitling," Ansari said in his address at the 59th National Film Awards here.
He said foreign films were entering India through dubbing and subtitling but Indian regional films were not utilising dubbing and sub titling to their full potential.
"We have not enhanced the share of Indian feature films that are dubbed from one Indian language to another. On the contrary their number has declined in the past decade from 213 films in 2001 to 147 films in 2011," Ansari said.
The need of the hour is to ensure that we create through dubbing and subtitling a national market for films produced in all regional languages, the Vice-President said.
"To a limited extent this is happening in the case of Television programmes in contiguous linguistic areas. We need to broadbase such attempts so that our citizens can know and appreciate each other's culture and social settings. This will also help revive the regional film industry," he said.
Ansari said it was an under-appreciated fact that over 80 per cent of the films certified for public exhibition were regional films.
Ansari was speaking after giving awards to winners of the 59th National film awards. He also presented the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award to Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee.
Speaking on the occasion, Ansari also commented that Indian cinema had successfully adapted traditional Indian narrative and oral traditions to the requirements of technology and formats of new media. PTI ADS ALM
