PANAJI:
The big question is whether the International Film Festival of India
(IFFI) has succeeded in raking in the tourism moolah, even as the
tourism industry has defended the state exchequer spending huge amounts
on the festival which it claims, serves as a high-profile marketing
tool.
Official figures now reveal that Goa spent seven times more
than the revenue it earned from IFFI over the last seven editions, and
questions arise over whether the tourism industry-a key economy-actually
benefits from the presence of the mega event being hosted annually by
the state.
Information
furnished to Rajya Sabha member Shantaram Naik by the Union information
and broadcasting ministry in Parliament stated that Goa spent
approximately 80 crore as against 10 crore it received during the seven
editions of IFFI.
Social activist Roland Martins says that IFFI has isolated a large section of stakeholders. "Is it held to benefit
only certain hotels? Are all stakeholders benefitting or only a coterie
of hotels?" he asked.
Asked if he felt if IFFI was benefiting
trade establishments, Martins said, "The answer that the benefits are
not coming in can be seen through the fact that the shopping festival
has not happened this year. The organizers claimed 6,000 delegates
registered this year. Media reports cite poor turnouts for movie
screenings. Where were the delegates?" he asked.
Visitors to the
IFFI street, set up on the Corniche during the festival, pointed out
that not a single food stall served Goan snacks.
"If IFFI is
supposed to showcase Goa to the world, why was not a single stall
selling Goan snacks to the delegates and tourists? If you noticed, there
was not even a single Goan working at the food stalls. The question
arises over who and how many Goans actually benefit from the 80 crore
spent from the tax payers' money," said Teresa D'Souza, a teacher from
Socorro-Bardez.
Ralph de Sousa, chairman of CII, Goa council, says
that IFFI and tourism complement each other. "A lot of people come to
Goa during the 10 days and it results in incremental revenue (for
establishments around Panaji)," he said.
But de Sousa felt that more than the revenue, the real benefit lies in the exposure that the state receives due to the festival.
"Goa
is highlighted every day before, during and after the festival through
(news and other) reports in glossy magazines the world over. Also, with
the film festival, Goa has a slot in the international film festival
calendar and rubs shoulders with other international film festivals such
as Cannes and Lausanne. This gives Goa free publicity worth crores in
the film and fashion industry," de Sousa said, adding that it is not
just some hotels, but also event managers who earn a buck. But more than
the revenue, it is the brand publicity that the festival brings, he
added.
Edward Jorge, city councillor and restaurant owner in
Panaji, said he witnessed an increase in customers during IFFI. "Around
30 delegates would come in every day," he said, adding that the delegate
passes some customers wore made it easier to distinguish festival
delegates from the other customers. IFFI did manage to also draw the
curious tourist already holidaying in Goa.
Steven Reid, a tourist from Scotland, said he travelled from his hotel in South Goa along with his wife to watch the football film screening.
Manuel
Cardoz, president, The Goan Traditional Shack Owners Association, said
not many IFFI delegates patronized the shacks on the Calangute-Baga
stretch. "Our customers continue to be charter tourists. We did not have
any IFFI delegates coming to the shacks here. I feel that IFFI only
benefits those with their businesses in Panaji. It does not help the
state," he said.
But Randhir Verma, an IFFI official from Delhi,
felt many of those involved in the tourism-related businesses were
trying to make a fast buck. Narrating his experience, Verma said, "I had
gone to a shack in Baga with my friends. We wanted to have some fish
but the only fish available (pomfret) cost between 1,200 and 1,800. The
waiter told us there was no cheaper fish available, but I think he was
fooling us. And the rates of the costly fish available were only told to
us verbally, not displayed on the menu."
Verma alleged the
coastal eateries were exploiting tourists. "They (shack owners) know
tourists who come to the shack, especially at night, will eat seafood
and hence try to loot them," he said.
Barnabe Sapeco, a
Panaji-based restaurateur, hotelier and member of the Goa Chamber of
Commerce and Industry's tourism committee said that IFFI delegates
either put themselves up in starred hotels or dormitories. "Most of the
younger delegates arrived in large groups and checked into low-budget
dormitories," he said.
ESG officials say around 160-odd delegates,
most of them student delegates, stayed in tents at the IFFI village. "I
feel that while there was no impact on tourism during IFFI, the
festival serves as a marketing tool to send the message out that Goa is
an international destination," Sapeco said.
Although the crowd at
this year's festival looked thinner as compared to previous years, ESG
officials claim 10,000-odd delegates registered for IFFI 2011. Of these,
2,807 were Goan delegates and 348 were Goa cinephile members.
Courtesy : http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-12-11/goa/30504307_1_iffi-tourism-industry-international-film-festival
Crosswoods holidays 2011
