Kolkata, 04 September (H.S.): On the birth centenary of legendary Bengali actor Uttam Kumar, West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday laid the foundation stone for the proposed Uttam Kumar Film Centre in New Town. The project, estimated to cost around Rs 25 crore, is aimed at creating a modern hub for Bengal’s film and entertainment industry.

At the event, Adhikari also announced that veteran actor Mithun Chakraborty would serve as a cultural adviser to the state government.

According to the West Bengal Information and Cultural Affairs Department, the birth centenary celebrations of Uttam Kumar began on Thursday evening at the Nandan complex. The following day, the foundation stone and ceremonial groundwork for the proposed film centre were held in New Town.

The Uttam Kumar Film Centre is planned as a three-part facility. The first section will include two cinema halls with a seating capacity of around 700 to 750 each, a preview theatre, food court and parking facilities. The second section will feature an auditorium with a seating capacity of around 1,000 people, along with an open-air theatre for cultural programmes.

The third section will house laboratories and studios dedicated to animation, visual effects (VFX), gaming, comics and film post-production. The facility is intended to provide Bengal’s media and entertainment sector with access to modern technological infrastructure.

The government expects technologies such as animation and VFX to play an increasingly important role in Bengali cinema in the coming years. With the growing scope for advanced technology in adventure and fantasy films in particular, the proposed facilities could provide opportunities for local artists and young professionals while enabling filmmakers to access modern technical services at comparatively lower costs.

The state government has set a target of completing the film centre over the next few years. The announcement of Mithun Chakraborty as the state government’s cultural adviser was also made during the programme.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh