With limited crew and social-distancing, Akshay Kumar shoots in Mumbai
The coronavirus-induced lockdown restrictions have brought the movie industry to a standstill, and the future of showbiz remains uncertain, to say the least. Even if movie shoots resume, there will be many rules and restrictions that will have to be followed. A recent awareness campaign shoot involving Akshay Kumar and director R Balki proves just that. Here's more on this.
The shooting took place at Kamalistan Studios for two hours
On Monday, Akshay and Balki stepped out to film an upcoming awareness campaign film for the Health Ministry, after taking all the necessary permissions from the government and the police. The ad film is reportedly about the the responsibilities of citizens after the lockdown. The shooting at the Kamalistan Studios took place with a 20-member crew, and was wrapped up in two hours.
Precautions used: Disinfection tunnel, masks, and temperature-checks
According to pictures and videos that surfaced from the shoot venue, all the cast and crew members had to pass through a disinfection tunnel, placed at the entrance of the set. Immediately after that, they were required to wear masks and face shields. They then had their temperatures checked through infrared thermometers by medical personnel wearing PPE suits.
Future of film shoots? Here's a clip from the set
Shoots across India remain stalled since March
Notably, all film productions across India remain stalled since mid-March in wake of the coronavirus pandemic. It has caused a great distress to producers as well as daily wage earners of Bollywood. In fact, producers are reportedly looking at a loss of Rs. 2,500 crore.
In relief to producers, Thackeray said shoots could soon resume
Recently, the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) sent a letter to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, thereby seeking permission to partially resume production work. Thereafter, in a meeting with theater and film industry delegates, Thackeray asked them to come up with an action plan in this regard. He added that shoots could be allowed in areas that are not coronavirus containment zones.
The Producers Guild has drafted new safety protocols
According to a report in Times of India, the Producers Guild of India has drafted a fresh set of health and safety protocols to be followed by the members of the film and TV industry, once shoots resume. They're waiting for a go-ahead from Thackeray.
