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Bollywood workers strike over pay
2008-10-01
MUMBAI (AFP) - More than 100,000 workers in Bollywood began an indefinite strike on Wednesday, protesting against low wages, late payments and the use of non-union members in the Indian film industry. "From this morning we are not going to sets and that has resulted in the cancellation of many shoots," said Dinesh Chaturvedi, the head of the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE). More than 20 unions affiliated to FWICE, including actors, lighting technicians and camera operators, are backing the walk-out after talks with producers broke down in August, he added. Chaturvedi said 147,000 people had not reported for work. "It is within our rights to ask for better pay. A film worker gets 600 rupees (12 dollars) per day and a television worker gets paid 500 rupees per day. The least the producers can do is pay them on time," he said. Indian media reported that Bollywood superstars Amitabh Bachchan and Shahrukh Khan had agreed not to work Wednesday and that some 40 shoots had been cancelled. The president of the Association of Motion Picture and TV Programme Producers, Ratan Jain, said the walk-out was not in the interests of the industry as a whole. But he said he was hopeful an agreement could be reached in the near future.
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