Film firm and federation battle in court

KOLKATA: On Monday, the Tollywood industry waited in anticipation Justice Soumen Sen’s decision on the case between Eskay Movies and Federation of Cine Technicians and Workers of Eastern India (FCTWEI), its president Swarup Biswas and general secretary Aparna Ghatak, and West Bengal Motion Pictures Artists Forum and Eastern India Motion Pictures Association.The court was apparently of the view that no action taken by FCTWEI against technicians willing to work with Eskay Movies will be implemented without the leave of the court. It also expressed the hope that the parties would speak to each other to resolve their issues in the interest of the industry. However, both parties are waiting to receive a copy of the order.
Multiple rounds of negotiations for over two months, between the production house and FCTWEI, failed after the shooting of “Chalbaaz” starring Shubhasree Ganguly and Bangladesh’s Shakib Khan was stalled both in London and Kolkata. To ensure that the next attempt to shoot the film in London from September is not disturbed by FCTWEI, the production house filed the suit.
Appearing on behalf of Eskay Movies, advocate Ranjan Bachawat argued that the MoU that stipulates the number of technicians who need to be taken for shooting abroad expired in 2015. Thus, there is no question of following it. By stalling shoot, FCTWEI is depriving technicians from getting work. This move, Bachawat said, is also sending out “a bad signal” to the potential investors in Bengal.
The issue of the production house being blacklisted was also raised and how FCTWEI had sent out a notice asking its members not to work with Eskay Movies. Along with this, the petitioner’s counsel stated that a technician was targeted because he was willing to work with Eskay Movies and his guild card was suspended.
Bachawat argued: “The FCTWEI has illegally procured breach of contract between Eskay Video and all technicians and actors by threatening and intimidating them into not working with them. They have used the threat of black-listing or cancelling the guild cards of anyone who works with Eskay.
Advocate Jishnu Saha, who appeared on behalf of FCTWEI, argued, “Since technicians are all affiliates of the federation, it is bound by certain rules. The authorities can take any action against errant technicians as per their rules”. During his argument, Saha pointed that trouble between FCTWEI and the production house was brewing for long. “Though the MoU has formally expired in 2015, all parties have been following it by conduct. Under the provisions of law, the agreement will continue to be in force till it is substituted by another agreement,” Saha said, pointing that earlier, even Eskay Movies had not taken 19 technicians for shooting abroad.
Bachawat countered all of Saha’s arguments, adding, the visa row was beyond the control of the production house as the applications made by the technicians were rejected repeatedly.