From rxpgnews.com
Indian film unit in Australia faces roadblock
By IANS,
Jan 19, 2007 - 6:45:06 PM
Sydney, Jan 19 - A Bollywood film being shot in Australia has run into trouble after Gold Coast Airport authorities in Queensland refused the crew access to shoot at the facility.
The producers of 'Hayy Babyy' are angry with the airport management after they were reportedly given a green signal initially but later denied access.
'They allowed us to look at the facility and we said it was perfect and we put the application in and we bring all these people here and now we might have to go to Sydney,' a visibly angry Anu Pam Sharma, the producer of the film was quoted as saying by the Gold Coast Bulletin newspaper.
'Why didn't they tell us in the first place?' he asked.
'There are security issues but we do allow movie shoots and I'll find out what has happened in this instance. I will talk to the producers,' airport manager Paul Donovan was quoted as saying
Sharma also said Queensland was in danger of losing Bollywood films because of soaring location costs and greater incentives being provided by other states, such as New South Wales -, Victoria and South Australia.
'Location prices in southeast Queensland have skyrocketed and it can be $10,000 a day now,' he said.
'Bollywood has been coming to the Gold Coast for the past eight years and it was the Queensland's premier who hosted a big dinner recently in Mumbai to lure Bollywood,' Sharma said.
Hayy Babyy stars Akshay Kumar, Fardeen Khan, Ritesh Deshmukh and Bomani Irani and is being directed by Sajid Khan. The film is expected to hit the screens in India in June or July, and it will also be shown in Queensland which has a large south Asian population.
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