Production costs will escalate, a small price to pay say experts
The entertainment industry is delighted that shooting/postproduction work is all set to resume, but there’s a ‘C’ factor few can ignore. Not Covid-19 itself, but extra costs. Industry insiders say precautions to keep the virus at bay will add at least 15% to production costs.
“It’s true production costs are going to shoot up, but what other option do we have?” says producer Bhushan Kumar, who has about three to four films that have about “five to six days of patch work [shooting] left”. Kumar hopes he can complete [shoot] work on his films “in July while taking all the precautions.”
According to experts, following guidelines such as taking breaks for cleaning and disinfecting sets etc., comes with a cost, and would also mean shorter working days and, in turn, longer schedules.
Besides, maintaining social distancing, arranging for medical facilities on sets, and even transportation are going to escalate the costs. Also, another challenge, say experts, could be getting labour for technical jobs such as lights, art, make-up, costumes etc. as many people have gone back to their native towns.
TV producer Rajan Shahi too admits that “the increased production cost is inevitable”. “I won’t call it ‘extra’ cost but ‘necessary’ cost. And whatever amount/ per cent it is, it has to be a part of the total costs. After all, it’s about people’s safety,” he says. Trade analyst Taran Adarsh concurs, saying: “Yes, production costs will go up but kya yeh kisi ki jaan se badh ke hai?”