Federation's proposal: Producers to pay Rs 5L before shooting begins in Tollywood

KOLKATA: The ongoing conflict between the Directors’ Guild and the Federation of Cine Technicians and Workers of Eastern India has been increasingly visible.

The issue came to the forefront two months ago when director Rahool Mukherjee was banned. Meanwhile, various issues like delayed payments, excessive working hours for artists and limitations on external work due to the Federation’s strict regulations have come to light.

The recent suicide attempt of a hairstylist, over alleged workplace harassment, has further intensified the crisis within the industry. At a meeting on Wednesday, the Eastern India Motion Pictures Association (EIMPA) and the Federation discussed relaxing rules concerning the number of technicians and equipment for films with a budget of up to Rs 30 lakh. The Directors’ Guild had previously raised concerns that the Federation’s regulations mandated additional crew members even when unnecessary for the shoot, leading to inflated costs for producers.

Another significant point discussed was the need to set a limit on daily shooting hours. Crew members have voiced complaints to the Federation about being forced to work for extended periods, sometimes up to 26 or 27 hours without breaks. The Federation also proposed that producers need to submit a Rs 5 lakh security deposit to EIMPA before the commencement of shooting.

This measure might help resolve issues related to outstanding payments once the work is completed. However, EIMPA head Piya Sengupta said that she will discuss this further with producers and filmmakers.

Meanwhile, this proposal has sparked controversy among filmmakers and producers. Many filmmakers question whether anyone can guarantee access to cinema theatres, successfully sell their projects to OTT platforms, or even recover their costs from ticket sales if they make this security deposit to EIMPA. This could further burden the already struggling Bengali film industry, they said.