Panaji: Goa Forward Party President Vijai Sardesai has criticized Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant for what he calls a “betrayal” of Goan artists and a breach of his own assurances. Sardesai alleged that despite earlier promises to reverse the “unjust” rule allocating only 15% space to Goan filmmakers in the State Film Festival, CM Sawant has now invited Maharashtra filmmakers to claim 70% of the space at the Marathi Film Festival, relegating Goan talent to compete for the remainder. Sardesai called this move a clear sidelining of Goan talent and urged that local creators deserve genuine opportunity, not token representation. He voiced his stance on social media, using hashtags like #GoanTalentFirst and #GoaDeservesBetter to rally support for Goan artists
