Tourism department’s plan to recreate Sholay magic in Ramanagara hits green hurdle

BENGALURU: The forest and tourism departments are on a collision course over the latter’s proposal to develop a virtual reality village themed on Bollywood blockbuster Sholay amid the rocky terrain of Ramanagara.
The tourism department wants to set up the 3D village near Ramadevara Betta, an hour’s drive from Bengaluru. The idea is to offer visitors the Sholay experience on the very location where it was shot. “We are toying with the idea of developing it into a unique tourist destination by blending the film experience with adventure sports.The Ramanagara boulders are suitable for rock climbing. If the forest department has any objection, we will convince them,” said tourism minister Priyank Kharge.
The forest department, however, is not on board. All wings of the department have opposed the plan, saying it would amount to intrusion into forest area. While most of the land around Ramadevara Betta is a protected forest area, the hillock itself has been declared a vulture sanctuary as it houses the endangered long-billed vultures.

“We will never permit them to set foot in the rocky terrain of Ramanagara since it is a protected forest. Forget developing a tourist destination, we will not even allow a research project,” said B J Hosmath, managing director, Forest Development Corporation. “The forest department’s map says 280 acres around Ramadevara Betta was notified as forest land in 1917. The law prohibits anyone from entering the area,” said a senior forest officer.
K S Sugara, principal chief conservator of forests, said the proposal is not in the interest of wildlife conservation. “I cannot understand why anyone wants to experience a film in a forest land. If you want to enjoy a film like Sholay, you can go to a theatre,” said Sugara.
The Karnataka Eco Tourism Development Board (KEDB) feels the tourism department should not decide on such projects unilaterally. “We haven’t got any formal communication on the project. It should not be allowed,” said Vinay Luthra, chairman, KEDB.
Forest officials said if Sholay is remade, Ramanagara’s hills would be off limits for the makers, given the existing rules.
What proposal envisages
The Rs 15 crore project envisages developing the 3D virtual reality village on a 42,000 sqft locale to recreate Ramgarh of Sholay by this year-end. Tourists would get to interact with favourite Sholay characters such as Gabbar Singh, Basanti, Veeru and Jai. The project may be executed on a public private partnership (PPP) model and a private company is being considered for it.
Resort project was nixed in 2010
This isn’t the first time that the government is mulling commercialization of the terrain. In 2010, the government proposed to give 300 acres of land surrounding Ramadevara Betta to an Andhra Pradesh-based construction company, Ananthara Resorts, to build a resort themed on Sholay. The then forest minister V S Acharya backtracked after widespread public outrage, leading to the project being shelved.
“What’s alarming is that the government wants to involve private parties every time it comes up with an idea to develop tourism development in Ramanagara. The proposal looks like a repeat of the BJP government’s move in 2010,” said Sharath Champati, a naturalist.
Rocks home to rare vulture species
The rocks of Ramanagara are a natural habitat for long-billed vultures. A census conducted 50 years ago revealed 77 vultures had made the rocks their home. Over the years, the vulture population has come down; just nine vultures were spotted in 2010. As a result, 346.41 hectares of the hillock area, part of a reserve forest, was declared a vulture sanctuary on January 30, 2012, and cordoned off with chain-link fencing. Although no census was conducted, the forest department counted 12 hatchlings in 2014.
“The tourism department should be sensitive. They can develop an adventure destination elsewhere,” said Anish Andheria, president, Widlife Conservation Trust. “If the government chooses to ignore green concerns and go ahead with the project, it will only lead to a movement against the project,” Andheria added.