4 min readKolkataAug 4, 2024 06:39 AM IST
First published on: Aug 3, 2024 at 02:04 PM IST
The Bengali film industry has been an enthusiastic supporter of Mamata Banerjee since her rise to power over a decade ago and recently the West Bengal Chief Minister displayed the hold she continues to have over Tollywood as the industry is popularly known.
Banerjee recently intervened to resolve a stalemate between directors and technicians over the boycott of the shoots of director Rahool Mukherjee.
On July 30, actors Prosenjit Chatterjee and Dev along with filmmaker Goutam Ghose met Banerjee in an attempt to resolve the deadlock as studios remained closed and several shooting projects remained on hold after technicians refused to work on a film Mukherjee is directing. The director is currently facing a three-month ban imposed by the Federation of Cine Technicians’ Workers of Eastern India (FCTWEI) for allegedly violating the industry’s norms by employing Bangladeshi technicians on a previous project.
The stand-off escalated last Saturday when technicians walked off the set of Mukherjee’s new film, leading to a show of solidarity from other directors who ceased work on Monday in protest.
The industry remained divided, with prominent figures such as Prosenjit and Anirban Bhattacharya supporting Mukherjee, while technicians stuck to their positions. However, soon after the meeting between the industry veterans and the CM, the standoff was resolved and shooting in Tollygunge’s studios resumed on Wednesday. Both Chatterjee and Dev, who is a Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP, expressed gratitude to Banerjee for her support and expressed confidence about a swift resolution of the issue.
Time and again, Banerjee and her party have swayed the Bengali film industry by making legislators out of film stars while rewarding many film personalities with awards. Sources said Banerjee knows very well that being surrounded by celebrities fetches her party easy votes. “The trend of celebrities joining political parties and getting involved in active politics exists across the country. This is no different. Mamata Banerjee cares for film personalities and wants to further develop the industry. The state government has always given them priority. Therefore, she has nothing but the best interest of the film industry in mind,” said a TMC insider.
Bengali film and television stars dominate the stage of most state-sponsored cultural events, because Banerjee promotes them, inviting them to attend her party meetings and rallies and using their star quotient for political purposes. Over the years, the TMC’s annual Martyrs’ Day rally in Kolkata on July 21 has become a star-studded affair, with Bengali film stars occupying front-row seats on stage.
Ahead of this year’s Lok Sabha polls, Banerjee appeared in the popular Bengali TV show “Didi No 1” as part of her outreach campaign. Its host Rachana Banerjee is the current TMC MP from Hooghly.
Not just Rachana or Dev, Mamata over the years has handpicked actors and actresses to win crucial seats in Lok Sabha and Assembly elections — from established actors such as Tapas Pal, Shatabdi Roy, Debashree Roy, Moon Moon Sen and Chiranjeet, to stars from the younger generation such as Dev, Mimi Chakraborty, Nusrat Jahan, and singer Aditi Munshi.
The trend has continued in recent years with more celebrities such as director Raj Chakraborty, actors Soham Chakraborty, Sayantika Banerjee, Saayoni Ghosh, June Maliah, and Kanchan Mullick joining the party and winning elections; not to mention her roping in of heavyweights such as Shatrughan Sinha and Babul Supriyo from the BJP.
Apart from political positions, The TMC government has also bestowed honours on industry names who are close to it. Since 2012, the Mamata government has been conferring the Mahanayak Samman and other awards to Bengali film and television personalities “for outstanding contributions in the world of cinema”.
This year, the CM has conferred the Mahanayak Samman on Bengali Rachana Banerjee and singer Nachiketa Chakraborty. Prosenjit Chatterjee was given a special award for his contribution to the Bengali film industry over the last four decades. Actors Subhasis Mukherjee, Ambarish Bhattacharya, and Rukmini Moitra received special awards.
On July 30, actors Prosenjit Chatterjee and Dev along with filmmaker Goutam Ghose met Banerjee in an attempt to resolve the deadlock as studios remained closed and several shooting projects remained on hold after technicians refused to work on a film Mukherjee is directing. (Photo: X/@idevadhikari) 
Share
