Chennai: Shooting schedules of more than 30 Tamil films were disrupted on Saturday after the Tamil Film Producers Council observed a one-day token strike, bringing production activity to a standstill from morning till evening.
The protest follows a resolution passed at the Council’s general body meeting on April 26, seeking that actors and actresses be paid on a revenue-sharing basis. The Council said the token strike was announced to draw attention to the demand.
With the stoppage, shoots involving several leading actors were cancelled, including projects featuring Suriya, Silambarasan (Simbu), Vijay Sethupathi, Vishal, Vijay Antony and Rio. Productions underway both within the city and at outstation locations were affected.
The Council claimed the disruption led to losses running into several crores. In a statement, it said that in Telugu cinema, actors and directors share profits and losses with producers, but such a model is not followed in Tamil cinema.
The Producers Council said it had raised the issue with the actors’ association multiple times over the past three years without any action, prompting the strike. It also said it received support from FEFSI and the Active Producers Association, while the actors’ association has opposed the move from the outset.
