#Rewind2020: From artists-technicians facing financial crunch to shows being axed; here’s how the pandemic affected Bengali TV

The pandemic, followed by the lockdown, affected lives in various ways. It affected many industries including the entertainment sector. Bengali entertainment industry witnessed a tough time, too. The shooting for TV, film and other mediums was on halt for almost three months due to the lockdown. Artists, technicians, vendors and many others directly or indirectly associated with Bengali industry, faced financial crunch and other adverse effects. A few TV shows came to an abrupt end during the lockdown, while a few others ended soon after the lockdown was eased and shootings resumed. Insecurity, pay cut, delayed payment and many other things haunted many who work in Bengali television industry. The post lockdown era also witnessed a few changes. Let’s take a look… (Photo: Facebook)

As soon as the decision of stopping the shoot was taken, unit members of many TV shows worked overnight to have enough footage for episode banking. The initial decision was to halt shooting from March 19 to March 31 which gradually extended as the nation-wide lockdown was announced. Here's a photo from the shooting floor of Nishir Daak. The show was later axed by the channel during the lockdown.

The shooting in Bengali entertainment industry was on halt for almost three months. Many artists, technicians, and others faced financial issues in their personal lives. Few artists-technicians, who are originally from other cities, left the city and went to their hometown. A few were seen engaging in temporary jobs to meet the financial needs. Artists’ Forum and other stakeholders mobilised different funds to help who are in dire need. The situation wasn’t different for singers, jatra artists or theatre artists. For example, singer Nilisha Basak, who later featured in Didi No. 1, had to sell bread and biscuits for a living during the lockdown. She faced a stiff financial crunch since there were no functions held due to the pandemic. Numerous artists faced a similar situation just like Nilisha. Many artists complained about pay-cuts and delayed payment. Even after the shoot was resumed with COVID-protocols, many actors complained about a significant percentage of pay cut from the channel’s side. The production houses, on the other hand, complained about a stiff budget sanctioned by the channel. The channels, however, cited a huge revenue loss due to lockdown. Here's a photo of singer Nilisha selling food items on the streets. (Photo: Facebook)

Indian Motion Picture Producers’ Association (IMPPA) has nationally issued a notice on March 15, in which all kinds of shootings including television, film and web-platform have been asked to stop. The association has advised to stop shooting from March 19. In a meeting on March 17, attended by Minister of Public Works and Youth Services & Sports of West Bengal Aroop Biswas, director Raj Chakroborty, members of Artists' Forum, Bengali television channels have jointly decided to stop shooting for television and films from the next day as a precautionary measure amid the pandemic. The initial decision was, shooting of all forms will be on halt from March 19 to March 31. Soon, the nation-wide lockdown was announced and the shootings were stalled for almost 3 months. (Photo: A symbolic picture)

A popular Bengali television channel plugged off four of its shows- 'Nishir Daak', 'Chirodini Ami Je Tomar', 'Mangal Chandi', 'Kanak Kakon' during the lockdown. The incident left the unit members in complete shock after the announcement was officially made. The channel decided to air dubbed shows and reruns instead of airing fresh ones. Yet another channel also dropped their new show 'Bagh Bondi Khela', starring Rubel and Ishani, during the lockdown. A few artists of 'Bagh Bondi Khela' reportedly had no prior intimation before the show went off-air.

During the lockdown, the television channels left no stone unturned to spice up the entertainment quotient of home-bound audience. Reruns of old shows, dubbed versions of Hollywood flicks, hit Bengali films and dubbed shows were aired. Bengali television saw the rerun of many hit serials like Gaaner Opare, Ogo Bodhu Sundori, Goyenda Ginni, Deep Jwele Jai, Bhutu, Agni Parikkha and many others during the lockdown. For the first time, artists shot a few sequences from their respective places for their shows which were later clubbed together on the editing table and aired as a single episode. (Photo: Facebook)

Many shows including 'Durga Durgeshwari', 'Ekehane Akash Neel', 'Netaji' and many other shows went off-air soon after the shootings resumed in June. Industry insiders suggest, the impact of lockdown was one of the reasons behind the decision. (Photo: Facebook)

The shoots resumed from June post lockdown. There were many rules and regulations like monitoring health conditions of the crew members, regular sanitisation, shoot with a limited number of unit members and maintaining a physical distance. Shooting started following the norms of 'new normal'. The artists were asked to use their personal make-up kit and wash their costumes as a precautionary measure. Child artists below the age of 10 weren’t allowed on the set. Artists over the age of 60 years were allowed to show but on their own risk. Following this, many senior actors quit the shows. Gradually, the regulations have been eased. The post-lockdown era has seen many changes. A number of artists, technicians are still complaining about pay-cut. Production budget has been significantly reduced by the channels citing loss, industry sources suggest. Here's a photo from the first day of shoot from Ki Kore Bolbo Tomay's floor after lockdown.

Keeping safety gear and passion for work side by side celebrities worked hard amid the Corona scare. Despite taking precautionary measures, a number of celebrities including 'Dadagiri Unlimited ' host Sourav Ganguly, Raj Chakraborty, Neel Bhattacharya, Vivaan Ghosh, Mika Singh, Akriti Kakar, Srikanta Acharya and many other actors tested positive for COVID-19. All of them recovered and resumed work with full enthusiasm. Actor and 'Sa Re Ga Ma Pa' host Abir Chatterjee recently tested positive for COVID-19. (Photo: Facebook)