Jaya refunds govt grant, 'Roid' to be produced under revised terms

The actor-turned-producer Jaya Ahsan was awarded a government grant of Tk 60 lakh for her film project titled "Roid" during the 2020-21 fiscal year — set to be directed by Mejbaur Rahman Sumon, renowned for the movie "Hawa". However, three years later, both the director and producer announced that the film would proceed without government funding, under a new arrangement. Jaya Ahsan has already returned the initial instalment of the grant. 

Previously, director Amitabh Reza Chowdhury also returned grant money within the same financial year.

Md Saiful Islam, Deputy Secretary of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, verified the reimbursement of Jaya Ahsan's funds. He mentioned, "Jaya Ahsan has expressed her intention not to continue with the film. She has refunded the money received in the initial payment."

When questioned about the timing of the money's return, Saiful Islam clarified that along with the refunded initial payment, a letter was included with an invoice. However, they haven't received the letter yet, so he couldn't confirm when Jaya Ahsan returned the money.

Regarding the reimbursement of the grant money, director Sumon stated, "The casting process, location selection, and even my own busy schedule have all contributed to delaying the commencement of the project. We received the grant two years ago, and the deadline for submitting the film has already passed. Many have faced criticism for not being able to complete and submit the movie on time. Neither Jaya nor I wish to face such criticism. Therefore, we decided to return the grant money. However, given the circumstances, we may require additional time to complete the film."

The director emphasised that despite returning the grant money, the movie is still in progress under a different arrangement. Sumon stated, "Returning the grant money doesn't imply that the film project is being abandoned. I have already finalised the pre-production tasks. The film will be produced under our own company, Facecard Production.

When asked whether Jaya would still be involved as "Roid's" producer despite the grant being returned, Sumon replied, "We haven't discussed this with Jaya yet. I'll be able to confirm whether she'll be a producer of the film or not later. Our last conversation only revolved around the grant. We both agreed that we rushed into making the film, which we didn't want to do." 

Jaya Ahsan could not be reached for further discussion on the matter. Currently, the actress is in India promoting another film.