In a fresh standoff between a section of directors and technicians belonging to the Federation of Cine Technicians and Workers of Eastern India, the shooting of a Bengali film was stalled on Monday as none among the crew turned up at the location in Kolkata.
Expressing frustration over the development, director Kinshuk Dey said 85 per cent of the shooting of the film ’Harry Om’ had been completed in the past one year amid disruptions and setbacks and only 15 per cent was left.
"Though as per the practice we had given ’call time’ (time specified to resume shooting) to everyone – actors and the crew – none of the technicians turned up at the location at Baghajatin area in Jadavpur today. I had the hunch this is going to happen as there was no response when I posted the call time on our WhatsApp group last night,” Dey said.
Some of the technicians might have some emergencies, but no alternate names were suggested as is the practice, the director said. Dey was among the 14 Bengali film directors who had filed petitions at the Calcutta High Court on the issue of alleged interference by the Federation in deciding the names and number of technicians in their film projects.
The charge was denied by the Federation President Swarup Biswas who accused the directors of insulting the federation and technicians. He said this was not new as the shooting of a feature film by director duo Abhijit Guha and Sudeshna Roy had similarly been affected before a rapprochement could be arrived.
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Voicing helplessness over the situation, actor-director Anirban Bhattacharya said, "We asked for some queries only and are yet to get any reply in the past one year. If technicians do not come, it will affect them economically," he said. Dey and Bhattacharya said the directors have sought an audience with the Information and Cultural Affairs (I & C A) Secretary on Tuesday to settle the matter.
"We will seek the government’s guidance and suggestion to wriggle out of the situation," Bhattacharya added. In the past one year, the shooting of several directors like Srijit Roy and Rahool Mukherjee had suffered temporary setbacks on the same issue before being resolved. Biswas, when contacted, said he had no idea about the disruption of the shooting of Dey’s upcoming movie as shootings of countless other feature films, OTT series, and TV soaps were continuing as usual.
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