Actors, technicians to face 20% income cut

Theatre Owners Association gears up to reopen cinema halls

The Telugu movie industry which has been feeling the pinch with the prolonged Covid-19 shutdown that threw its finances into turmoil, has decided to cut the remuneration received by actors and technicians by 20 per cent.

The Movie Artists Association (MAA) and the Active Telugu Film Producers Guild on Saturday announced that both groups have agreed to the reduction on the pre-lockdown rates. The Guild said with many unknowns lying ahead, there was a need to resume work by taking decisions that will ensure that the Telugu movie industry can sustain itself till the situation normalises.

Though the government is opening up various sectors of the economy including movie theatres, questions remain on theatre occupancy, a zero foreign theatrical market, and decrease in revenue realization on account of the impact of

Covid-19 on all sections of society.

“After fruitful discussions with the MAA, we have been able to arrive at an understanding that will set the tone and help us lift ourselves from the situation in the near future,” the Guild said in its announcement.

It said that artists whose remuneration is

`20,000 or less per day will not face any cuts.

With respect to technicians, those drawing more than `5 lakh per film will face the 20 per cent cut in remuneration on par with others.

Meanwhile, though the Centre has said that movie theatres can reopen from October 15, with the Telangana state government yet to give its go-ahead, the Telangana Theatre Owners Association (TTOA) on Saturday said its members were gearing up for the reopening.

“Like most industries, cinema and theatre industry suffered huge losses and single screen theatres accumulated losses of at least `2 lakh per month in the past seven months. We do not expect to immediately get into a profit-making mode once the theatres are reopened. What we hope for is to minimise the ongoing losses,” Vijayender Reddy, TTOA secretary, said.

The association members met on Saturday to discuss the way forward, and the safety and security protocols to be followed, once the state government gives the goahead for reopening of the cinemas.

Theatre owners assured that every Covid-19 safety protocol will be followed and urged the state government to allow them to function at 50 per cent of their seating capacity as allowed by the Centre.

Balgovind Raj Tadla, who owns two theaters at RTC crossroads, told Deccan Chronicle that the government should balance between people’s health and its economy. “The reopening of the theatres will lead to restarting employment for many. The OTT platforms are a threat to cinema theatres and the government’s nod to reopen cinemas will help us,” he said.

The association members met on Saturday to discuss the way forward, and the safety and security protocols to be followed, once the state government gives the go-ahead for reopening of the cinemas.