By IANS,
Panaji : A Brazilian filmmaker and a jury member of the recently concluded the 39th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) were detained by hotel authorities in Mumbai because the organisers of the event didn’t clear their bills.
Brazilian filmmaker Helder D’Costa and Filipino filmmaker and IFFI jury member Lav Diaz were detained by the staff of the Bawa International Hotel when they were leaving for the airport, sources said.
“Diaz then had to shell out about $200 before the hotel let him go,” the sources claimed.
The filmmakers, who were on their way home, were in Mumbai on transit.
Manoj Srivastava, Chief Executive Officer of the Entertainment Society of Goa, which looked after the logistics for IFFI, termed the incident unfortunate and said it happened because of a misunderstanding between the hotel and the delegates.
“The hotel was selected after proper bidding and it was convenient because of its proximity to the Mumbai (Sahar International) airport. They shouldn’t have stopped the delegates from leaving. They should have informed us, we would have made the payment as soon as possible,” Srivastava told IANS.
The IFFI, held in Goa Nov 22-Dec 2, featured more than 200 films from all over the world.