Bengal actors, technicians call off day-long cease work after consensus to implement security SoP

Kolkata: Actors and technicians of the Bengali film and television industry on Tuesday staged a day-long cease work demanding safety at workplace, but they later decided to lift the stir and resume shooting from April 8 after reaching a consensus with producers and channels for the adoption of a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to ensure proper security arrangements.

The artistes called the strike on Tuesday after actor Rahul Arunoday Banerjee drowned in the sea during an outdoor shoot of a Bengali soap near Digha in Purba Medinipur district on March 29.

Shooting for soaps, web series and films in different studios of Kolkata came to a halt this morning as artistes called for a cease work demanding proper safety arrangements at their workplace.

The West Bengal Motion Picture Artistes' Forum had given the call for an indefinite cease work till an SoP was formulated and introduced to ensure the safety and security of actors, crew and other members of every production unit.

Senior forum member and Bengali film star Prosenjit Chatterjee told reporters in the evening that after day-long deliberations with production houses, entertainment channels, and film owners' and distributors' body Eastern India Motion Pictures Association (EIMPA), it has been decided that the cease work will be withdrawn from April 8 as all stakeholders decided that a fool-proof SoP, covering all security aspects, will be adopted and made mandatory in the next 15-20 days.

However, the production house that was making the television soap starring Rahul and had arranged the outdoor shoot in Talsari will be kept out of any shoots till the police inquiry was over and they are given a clean chit, Chatterjee said.

The forum held a meeting in the morning at the heritage Technician's Studio to draft recommendations for the SoP, which will be submitted to channels and production houses for implementation on an urgent basis.

All prominent actors and directors and heads of production houses, excluding the company which had produced the soap opera starring Rahul, were present.

"The SoP will be adopted and actors and crew will not take part in shooting if there are apprehensions of real risk. In the meantime, for the interest of everyone concerned and for the sake of the industry, shooting will resume from tomorrow without the participation of one production house," another senior forum member and actor Rituparna Sengupta said.

The forum's general secretary, Shantilal Mukherjee, had on Sunday said that no artiste or technician or spot boy would work on the shooting floor or outdoors without the full implementation of a proper SoP.

Federation of Cine Technicians and Workers president, Swaroop Biswas, said the SoP was essential so that no more mishaps took place in future.

"We are satisfied with the decision arrived at the meeting. We don't want such incidents to repeat but for the sake of their livelihood, we want shootings to resume. Today, it has been decided that the SoP will cover all aspects of safety conforming to guidelines followed all over the world. Before the SoP is enforced, every production house will be accountable for the issue of safety of the actors and crew members and they have promised to plug all loopholes from now on," Biswas said.

Representatives of channels and production houses were present at the meeting which took place at the Technician's Studio for hours.

Chatterjee said the sudden death of Rahul has pointed out many loopholes in the shooting system.

"We don't wish to take any side or be judgmental against anyone. All we want is a safety and security cover," he said.

On Saturday, the forum lodged an FIR with Kolkata Police against the producers of the serial, casting Rahul, and accused them of conducting the shoot in a "negligent manner". His wife, Priyanka Sarkar, also lodged an FIR with Odisha Police as the incident took place at Talsari in the neighbouring state