CINTAA condemns violence at FWICE strike

The indefinite strike called by the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) seems to have run into opposition in the first week itself. Another employee body from the industry, Cine and Television Artistes' Association (CINTAA) has now put out a press release condemning the protestors.

This move comes after the protestors carried out a mock funeral of producer and member JD Majethia at Film City, as part of the strike. The said strike was called in by the FWICE to protest against the unfair employment practices in the television industry.

The CINTAA called for a meeting against this protest on 17 August, and has criticized the use of 'vulgar, unparliamentary language' during the protests.

The press release reads, "The office bearers/EC members of affiliates of FWICE and CINTAA were present in the Joint Meeting held on 17th August, 2017 at 5.00 pm at IFTDA (Indian Film and Television Directors' Association) to register disapproval of the manner in which the indefinite strike by FWICE was called from 15th August, 2017."

Speaking to Cinestaan.com, FWICE president Birendra Nath Tiwari had said, "We informed the producers about the decision (to strike) on 1 August. We sat down with the producers and the channels in the first week of July, but they did not accept our terms. We had mutually agreed to some terms in 2015, but they declined it. We took the issue to court on 31 July, and later, took the decision to go on strike. There was a 14 day notice that we gave the producers, before going on strike. So we have taken all the processes legally."

A tweet was also posted on the official Twitter handle of CINTAA, condemning the 'uncivilized and dishonourable stand which has lowered the diginity of our industry'.

The CINTAA has refused that it is a part of this industry wide strike called by the FWICE. "The strikers in their speeches/ media have named us as supporters of the strike, thus, telling lies in open. We condemn the hypocrisy of the Office Bearers of FWICE," the press release stated.

However, the release supported the cause of the issue supporting the welfare of 'each member' working in the industry, but maintained that the disagreements need to be conveyed in 'a civilized way'.

While the FWICE had called for a strike and claimed the participation of 2,50,000 of its members from the industry, CINTAA has suggested that its members are free to work for any producer/production company of their choice.

In a video, actor Sushant Singh, general secretary of CINTAA, spoke about the need to make an organized effort before launching into a strike.

While Singh says that CINTAA supports the reasons for the strike, he demands the assurance of leading actors to 'not be present' on set to ensure a proper strike. "Unless we have that assurance, we won't give a call for strike," says Singh.