We need Anirban: Dev calls for an end to six-month ban

On Friday, Dev created quite a stir by making a public appeal to the Federation of Cine Technicians & Workers of Eastern India and the Bengal CM to lift the unofficial work ban on his Raghu Dakat co-star Anirban Bhattacharya. “Anirban ke please kaj korte din. As an actor he has so much to give to the Bengali film industry,” the actor-MP said in his appeal to Federation and Eastern India Motion Picture Association (EIMPA) representatives during a meeting. Apologising on Anirban’s behalf with folded hands, Dev added, “For the past six months, he has been banned from working in the Tollywood industry and I feel it’s not right, as he has to earn his living.” All eyes are now on whether the ‘unofficial ban’ against Anirban would finally be lifted. When we reached out to Dev on Saturday for a comment, he said, “I said what I had to on Friday. I’m sure the authorities will look into the matter now.”The ‘boycott’ cultureThe Tollywood-Federation stand-off started in 2024 when prominent filmmakers, including Srijit Mukherji and Kaushik Ganguly came out in support of director Rahool Mukherjee, who was banned from shooting for 3 months by the Federation alleging that he had violated its rules on shooting in a foreign country. The impasse came to a head in early 2025, when several prominent filmmakers, including Anirban, Parambrata Chatterjee, Subrata Sen, and others, moved the Calcutta High Court against the Federation, accusing it of interfering in their work. They alleged that the Federation often tried to control shoots, crew choices and production decisions, making it difficult for directors and producers to work freely in the Bengali film industry. In its September 2025 ruling in the case, the High Court asserted that no one has the right to stop an artiste from working, and that interfering with someone’s livelihood is illegal. The court also advised affected filmmakers to approach the police if such actions continued. But nothing much has changed. The latest victim is actor Riddhi Sen, who was supposed to work in director Suman Ghosh’s Shrirampur Diaries. However, technicians are reportedly unwilling to work with him,and because of this, the film’s shooting has been put on hold for now. The Federation, however, has not made any official statement on the matter. Speaking to us, Riddhi said, “All these problems arose because of a post I made on November 16. Subsequently, I was asked by the Federation to send an apology letter and an assurance that I won’t write any such thing in future. Why should I? As a citizen in a democratic country, I have the right to express my opinions freely. If I lose out on work for expressing my opinion, so be it.”