COVID-19: Film federation lays new guidelines for shooting
The Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) has formed a monitoring team to ensure that all COVID-19 shooting guidelines, including safety precautions on-set, avoiding filming of crowd sequences, are strictly followed amid the surge in coronavirus cases in Maharashtra. The film and TV industry has been badly hit due to the rising COVID-19 cases in the state and particularly the capital city.
Several on-ground productions have been forced to halt shoots
Several on-ground productions like Ram Setu, Gangubai Kathiawadi, and Dharma Productions-backed Mr. Lele halted shoots after their leading actors and actresses, including Akshay Kumar, Alia Bhatt, Vicky Kaushal, and Bhumi Pednekar tested positive for coronavirus. Apart from the actors, as many as 45 members of Kumar's Ram Setu also tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
FWICE guidelines to be applicable till April 30
According to a statement from the FWICE on Friday, the office-bearers had a meeting with Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and assured him that the industry will be responsible for following the SOPs (Standard Operating Procedure). "People involved in pre-production, shooting, and post-production work will have to adhere to the FWICE guidelines. These guidelines will be applicable till April 30," the statement read.
No crowded sequences will be shot
According to the new guidelines, shooting of crowd sequences and songs with dancers in large numbers will not be allowed. Wearing of masks and continuous sanitization are compulsory on the sets, in production offices, and in post-production studios. An FWICE monitoring team will visit sets and post-production studios for a regular check. Any individual or production unit flouting the rules will face disciplinary action.
No shooting to take place during the weekend lockdown
The Maharashtra government on Sunday announced a weekend lockdown from 8 pm on Friday to 7 am on Monday in a bid to curb the COVID-19. "Shooting, setting, pre-production activities should be avoided during the weekend lockdown. It is permissible to shoot from Monday to Friday. All members are hereby advised to schedule their shootings as per the above permissible days," the statement said.
Maharashtra's COVID-19 tally stands at over 3.23M cases
The statement was signed by BN Tiwari, FWICE President, Ashok Dubey, General Secretary, Gangeshwar Srivastav, Treasurer and chief advisors Sharad Shelar and filmmaker Ashok Pandit. Maharashtra reported 56,286 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, taking its caseload to 32,29,547. The number of deaths climbed up to 57,028 with 376 deaths reported yesterday. Mumbai, meanwhile, saw a single-day spike of 8,938 cases.
