Kolkata’s Tollygunge studios saw a major drama unfold between technicians and directors, bringing the Bengali movie industry to a standstill over the weekend.
Last week, Rahool Mukherjee announced a Durga Puja film with a renowned production house, stating the shooting will begin by the end of July. However, on Saturday, the Federation of Cine Technicians and Workers of Eastern India (FCTWEI) issued a notification, stating he had flouted the rules of the federation and is banned for three months (October 19). It stated that the film’s cinematographer Soumik Halder could direct it.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Swarup Biswas is the president of the FCTWEI, which has directors and actors as its members.
Here’s all you need to know about the controversy that went on till Monday evening.
THE NOTIFICATION
The FCTWEI notification stated: “Chirantan Mukherjee (Rahool) has acted against the rules of the federation. Following this, the Directors Association of Eastern India (DAE) has asked him to stop shooting work. Rahool had visited Bangladesh a month ago. He was accompanied by a few artists. It is rumoured that they have shot there without informing the federation.”
Directors Sudeshna Roy and Subrata Sen sought a detailed explanation from Rahool. The accused director, in a written reply, gave the reason for his visit to Bangladesh. He stated that he had not gone to Bangladesh to shoot, but to discuss projects, including ‘Lahu’. The director said the news spread about him is baseless. The main attraction of ‘Lahu’ is Prosenjit Chatterjee, Anirban Bhattacharya.
THE IMPACT
While the Directors’ Guild lifted the ban, the FCTWEI called for a strike on Saturday saying Mukherjee cannot work in Tollygunge as a director. Top actors, such as Chatterjee, protested against it and did not shoot on Saturday. The directors requested all technicians to be on the floor from Monday, but nobody turned up, adding to the ire.
The directors then issued a statement stating that they would be obliged to go on strike starting Monday, July 29, 2024, unless the federation agreed to Mukherjee’s continued appointment as director.
On Monday afternoon, Tollywood producers and directors came together at Chatterjee’s Ballygunge Bari. Raj Chakraborty, Shiboprasad Mukherjee, Goutam Ghosh, Sudeshna Roy, Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, Birsa Dasgupta, Subrata Sen, Mansi Sinha, Kaushik Ganguly, Tathagata Mukherjee and Aparna Sen and other directors attended it.
INDUSTRYSPEAK
Chatterjee said, “There is no room for opposition. Technicians are our family. They are our brothers. We have no grievance against them. We fought for them. These are not places for stubbornness and anger. I think it is a fight for prestige. It is one family, where conflict happens, but that doesn’t break the family.”
Director and TMC MLA Raj Chakraborty said, “The technicians don’t want to work with Rahool. We are hurt and humiliated. One director brings the film and we all do that film together after that. In the same way, if we don’t go to work from Monday, will the crew be able to hand it over?”
Actor and TMC MP Dev was also present. He said, “Showing dominance is not the end goal. Even though you have authority, showing it is not the answer. Neither the filmmakers nor the producers nor the performers have insulted the technicians. It is truly heartbreaking that Prosenjit Chatterjee, one of the finest performers of all time, must wait after showing up on time for the shoot. It’s time for us to unite and find a solution.”
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