Turmoil in Tollywood: Directors, producers, and actors stand by Rahool Mukherjee
West Bengal filmmaker Rahool Mukherjee was shooting in Dhaka, Bangladesh for a series titled, "Lohu", which was supposed to star Bangladeshi actor Arifin Shuvoo and Kolkata's actress Shohini Sarker in the lead roles.
Learning about the shoot, the Director's Association of Eastern India imposed a three-month ban on the director, for secretly coming to Dhaka for a shoot. Later, the organisation lifted the ban. However, the Federation of Cine Technicians and Workers of Eastern India (FCTWEI) objected to the lifting of the ban and boycotted Rahool.
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The Federation accused Rahool of breaking its rules concerning shooting in a foreign country. FCTWEI president Swarup Biswas stated that Mukherjee filmed in Bangladesh without notifying either the Federation or the Directors' Association of Eastern India.
As a result, the Federation's technicians in support of the ban, refused to work in Rahool's presence on July 27.
Meanwhile Rahool was directing an untitled film produced by SVF in Dhaka, planned for release during this year's Durga Puja. The lead roles were to be played by Prosenjit Chatterjee, Anirban Bhattacharya, Priyanka Sarkar, and Aparajita Adhya. Subsequently, SVF replaced Mukherjee with Soumik Halder as the director.
Tollywood is in turmoil over this. Amidst this situation, prominent directors, producers, and actors including the likes of Anjan Datta, Srijit Mukherji, Arindam Shil, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Dev, Raj Chakraborty, Parambrata Chattopadhyay have expressed their support for Rahool. The conflict between the directors and the federation has not been resolved yet. The directors of Tollywood protested the issue. They also questioned, 'if the directors stop working, will any work progress?'
They have shared their thoughts on social media as well.
Srijit Mukherji expressed his views on X (formerly Twitter), "Banning someone cannot be a solution, neither can clamping down on someone's right to work."
Kaushik Ganguly wrote on his social handle, expressing his concerns over the matter, "Artistes respect the institution as long as they enjoy freedom. No power or institution is stronger than an artist."
Anjan Dutt shared on Facebook, "Stopping a filmmaker from working is wrong, unethical, and illegal."
"If there is a hurdle in making a film, not only the director but also the producers, actors, crew, and technicians become frustrated and imperiled," director Kamaleshwar Mukherjee remarked and requested the Federation to reevaluate its decision.
"How can you ban an artiste," asked Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, expressing his disappointment at the Federation's decision.
Arindam Sil even probed the validity of the Federation's decision. "An institution must play the role of an umbrella, guiding an artiste if they commit a mistake and shielding them from every peril. I am having doubts on the legal validity of the institution punishing an independent artiste like this."
Birsa Dasgupta cited Jean-Luc Godard while expressing his protest against the decision to bar Mukherjee. "A filmmaker needs a good script and an able producer. 'Or a gun and a girl' (JLG). Rest all, fluff," he posted.
Actor and Producer Dev also made remarks on the matter and posted on his social handle regarding this issue, stating his desire to come to a solution leaving all the debates behind for the sake of the Bengali Film Industry. "The way our Bangla industry is heading towards a significant impending danger due to the Federation's decision can be illustrated by various events: no outside advertisements coming in, no outside film work coming in, and the narrowing path for work from neighbouring countries speaking the same language. If today's high earnings disappear tomorrow, there will be no entertainment industry left in West Bengal."
He also emphasised that entertainment based on regional language cannot survive without love, unity, respect, and discussion. Let there be temporary conflicts, if necessary, but let us strive for a better environment and better conditions for everyone.
"Bengali cinema's current condition is not good; this is not a matter of perception but a real problem, and thus, the solution cannot be based on perception, but on real actions. Power struggles and vote-counting won't solve it. This is not a political problem, and it cannot be solved politically. The problem concerns the entertainment workers, their work environment, and their dignity. This includes everyone, from the lead actor to those who provide water and food."
Rahool also mentioned to the media, "Through a lot of hardship I am trying to make a film. I request everyone to allow me to shoot the film peacefully."
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