IANS: Now 62-foot Charlie Chaplin statue in Karnataka, thanks to film

[Bruce Calvert]

http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/entertainment/now-62-foot-charlie-chaplin-statue-in-karnataka-thanks-to-film_100163703.html

Now 62-foot Charlie Chaplin statue in Karnataka, thanks to film
March 7th, 2009 - 12:31 pm ICT by IANS -

Bangalore, March 7 (IANS) Beautiful Maravanthe beach will soon get a
62-foot-high statue of master comedian Charlie Chaplin, thanks to a
film being shot there. The crew hopes their efforts will find a place
in the Guinness Book of World Records.
The statue would be erected near Maravanthe beach - about 400 km from
India’s tech capital Bangalore - for director Hemanth Hegde’s Kannada
film “House Full”. The filmmaker said he would like their creation to
remain a tourist attraction even after their shoot.

“We are shooting a song sequence in Maravanthe Beach where this 62-
feet statue of Charlie Chaplin is being shown. It will remain a
tourist attraction after we finish the film’s shoot,” said Hegde.

“We have applied for recognition from the Guinness Book of World
Records. David Brown from the Guinness Book is expected to arrive in
India to scrutinise our claim,” he added.

Produced by Anuj Saxena of Maverick Productions, “House Full” will see
Hegde play an important role along with actor Diganth, Vishaka Singh
and Girija Oak, who had featured in Aamir Khan’s “Taare Zameen Par”.

“Our film’s art director Chethan Mundadi is constructing the statue
with the assistance of many students from different art schools in the
state. It will cost us Rs.35 lakhs (Rs.3.5 million) and we are
awaiting permission from the Karnataka government to install the
statue. All the formalities have been completed in this regard and we
will probably install it on March 28,” said Hegde, who has directed
three Kannada films and Hindi film “Khanna and Iyer” earlier.

The director claimed that the BBC would be doing a half-hour programme
on the installation of the statue for the film.

“House Full” is a comedy about two irresponsible youngsters who are
always finding new ideas to please their girlfriends.

--
Bruce Calvert
Visit the Silent Film Still Archive
http://www.silentfilmstillarchive.com

[s***@attbi.com]

http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?sectionName=HomePage&id=00d9c96d-28bd-4ddc-a229-095af395832f&Headline=Chaplin+fan+lists+alternative+sites

Chaplin fan lists alternative sites

BR Srikanth, Hindustan Times
Email Author
Bangalore, March 17, 2009

Kannada film actor-director Hemant Hegde is determined to have a
statue of his idol Charlie Chaplin installed on the west coast of
Karnataka.

On Tuesday, he will meet chief secretary Sudhakar Rao to seek
permission for erecting the statue either at Om Beach, near Karwar,
520 km northwest of the state capital, or at Devbagh, 550 km northwest
of Bangalore. Both places are on the coast in the Uttara Kannada
district.

“This time, I hope the government will give me an approval in a week.
Being an artiste and director, I cannot run around for three months to
get permission (that's his grouse against authorities in Udupi, where
he sought approval for building a 60-ft statue at Paduvari village,
150 km from Mangalore). That will upset our shooting schedule,” he
told HT on Monday.

Hegde failed to get permission to have Chaplin's statue built in
Paduvari village because locals did not want a Christian's statue near
the entry to their temple. Chaplin was never known to have been a
believer in religion, but that is another matter. Hegde said he
planned to have the statue along the coast as it would form the
backdrop for a song in the last segment of his film, House Full.

Some fans of Charlie Chaplin called him to offer private land for the
statue but the actor-director is not sure if the offers are for real.

On Thursday, he plans to organise a protest in Bangalore by
representatives of the Kannda film industry against the manner in
which he was forced to leave Paduvari on Friday.
--
Bruce Calvert
Visit the Silent Film Still Archive
http://www.silentfilmstillarchive.com