The Kerala Film Chamber of Commerce has denied permission to 'Higuita' filmmakers stating they cannot retain the title of the movie for their venture. Recently, writer N S Madhavan had lashed out at the makers of the upcoming Suraj Venjaramoodu movie for using the title of his acclaimed short story 'Higuita' as the movie name.
In a detailed letter to the film chamber, Madhavan wrote he was grieved by the turn of events and requested them to withdraw the permission given to ‘2nd Half Productions’ and ‘Mangoes’n’ Cocunuts’ and producers Bobby Tharian and Sajith Amma, from using the title ‘Higuita’. He also asked the body to direct the producers not to go ahead with publicity of any kind, or release the film using the said title
Following the complaint, the film chamber has denied permission to the makers from using the title.
Speaking to Onmanorama, it's president G Suresh Kumar said they decided not to grant permission to the filmmakers keeping in mind the writer's concern.
“It is true that the film was announced a few years ago. Though we had granted permission to the filmmakers to use the title then, the registration was valid only for a year in 2019 after which it got expired. The filmmakers did not renew the title registration. However, they approached only after N S Madhavan made the complaint. Since his issue is genuine, we decided not to sanction their request,” he said.
Following the decision by the film chamber, N S Madhavan tweeted his thanks to the organisation. “ I have been informed that that the name Higuita will not be used for the movie. I am grateful to Kerala Film Chamber for facilitating this. Thanks for all the support. I wish young director Hemanth Nair and his film all success. May people flock to see Suraj-Dhyaan movie,” he wrote.
However, Hemanth Nair, the director of 'Higuita' said he has not received any word from the Kerala Film Chamber regarding this issue. “We have not received any information regarding the title from the Kerala Film Chamber. I am sure we can sort out the difference within the body itself,” he said.
