Bharat Bandh spells long working hours, loss for TV industry

Mumbai, May 31 (IANS) The nationwide shutdown called by opposition parties Thursday against rising prices and inflation forced the television industry here to take a day off spelling extra work and losses for many producers.

The director of "Mann Kee Awaaz Pratigya" could not shoot his second schedule because of transportation problem.

"We are just shooting for two to three hours as we had to do some patch up work for tonight's (Thursday night) show. We are falling short of technicians we can't shoot any which way. We are just shooting some final scenes for the show to be telecast today," Arvind Gupta told IANS.

He further added: "Our second shoot has been cancelled because of transportation problem. The loss could be estimated at Rs.4 lakh per show. It is such a pain. Not just we, the entire country faces a loss due to the bandh."

Other industry insiders agreed with Gupta and said that per day losses come to about the same.

Most of the technicians depend upon autorickshaws and buses to commute to work and due to the shutdown, it became difficult for them to travel.

Vikram Labhe, director of "Ek Hazaron Mein Meri Behna Hai", told IANS: "The reason behind not working today was especially for the sake of technicians. They are completely dependent on rickshaws and buses. With major transportation issues today, we didn't want to mess up."

He claims they had to bear losses. However, he refused to reveal the amount.

"Obviously we have to face loss from the productions point of view. Now, we will have to work extra one day to deliver the next episode, which was scheduled to be shot today," said Vikram.

Sabyasachi Banerjee, director of popular show "Uttaran", which is aired on prime time on Colors, says it's bad news for those who work on daily wages.

"We had to face a major loss as we have labourers who work on daily wages. I feel sad for them. Besides we also have a target of delivering 22 episodes per month so now we will have to increase our unit and work day and night to meet the deadline," he said.

Aakanksha Singh, the lead actress of "Na Bole Tum... Na Maine Kuch Kaha", says this forced break means non-stop work for her.

"Because of the 'bandh' my schedule has become very hectic. Now, I will be working for 24 hours," she said.

Ojaswi Oberoi, the lead actress of "Aasman Se Aage", is enjoying the unexpected break but at the same time she is concerned about the rising prices.

"I have got an off today and I am enjoying it. But on a serious note, prices are increasing everyday... it's a major problem for the common man," she said.