Panaji: Noted film critic, writer and academician Yashodhara Katkar makes it to attend IFFI every year and unfailingly for the past one decade. With a break of one or two years in the past for work related reasons, she has been a regular at IFFI since 2004. Daughter of ‘Nach Ga Ghuma’ fame Marathi novelist late Madhavi Desai, Yashodhara, a senior citizen has witnessed deterioration on the organisational level over the years. Noting the practical difficulties and glitches in booking for films, she points out, “The App for the booking of tickets for the shows starts at sharp 8 am and within one or two minutes it stops working. The screen starts shaking. There needs to be improvement in the App. And, for senior citizens like me, it is extremely difficult to handle the app and do the bookings. Youngsters are well-versed in using gadgets and it is easier for them. For people like us who like to watch movies in the film festival there should be some easier system for booking.”
Katkar also lamented that there are no separate queues for senior citizens outside auditoriums. “There should be a separate line for senior citizens and they should be allowed to enter first, or at least separately. Also the rush line system has to be restarted. It allows at least a dozen people to enter the cinema hall, who were not able to book the tickets. Those who book can enter first and if seats are empty the ones who could not book should be allowed to enter. This will help them not to be disappointed,” she asserted.
Katkar also had suggestions on screening popular films for the second or even third time. “Those who miss these films as two shows are full should be given a chance to have the third show, but not on the last day of the festival, as people are already leaving on that day,” said the film critic.
She appreciated this year’s free drinking water availability at various spots, though glasses were missing at many water spots. “Bottles are not allowed in the theatres, and the stalls are all selling one litre bottles which a person cannot drink at a time. So we have to leave the bottle outside the theatre and then it gets mixed with other bottles. This time I saw mineral water cans installed in the Inox complex which is a welcome move by the ESG,” said Katkar.
By Bharati Pawaskar
