Bhubaneswar: Iconic Kalinga Studio, which is now undergoing a massive transformation, is likely to be made operational in January next year.

A committee of Odisha Assembly, comprising seven MLAs, today visited the studio, located in the capital city here, and took stock of the development work.

“The state government is taking steps for making Kalinga Studio functional at the earliest. A target has been set to complete the ongoing transformation work by January next year,” said MLA Dusmanta Kumar Swain, the chairman of the Assembly committee.

It is worth mentioning here that Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi had visited the Kalinga Studio on June 1 this year and reviewed the transformation work.  

Majhi appreciated the existing facilities and the newly-built infrastructure at Kalinga Studio. He asked the officials concerned to prepare a detailed project report (DPR) to develop the studio into a modern and world-class facility.

Established in 1980, Kalinga Studio had played a key role in bringing new era in Odia film industry. The indoor and outdoor sequences of several popular Odia movies had been shot at Kalinga Studio in 1980s and 1990s.

The super cyclone of 1999 had caused extensive damage to the iconic studio. Moreover, the studio lost its importance due to shortage of modern equipment.

Soon after taking charge as the Chief Minister of Odisha, Majhi had directed the officials to expedite the transformation work at Kalinga Studio.

Accordingly, several new facilities including the entrance plaza, indoor shooting facility, Kalinga movie magic, avenue land, village area, iconic landmark, snow world, community hall, bamboo structure, waterbody and green area have been developed at the studio.