The entertainment industry was on a standstill ever since the COVID-19 pandemic hit India. Theatres have been shut and no shoots have been allowed since March 13, 2020. Now, as the shoots will resume soon as per new Government guidelines, telly and Bollywood actors are prepping up for what seems like the 'new normal'. But several daily soap actors are coming forward to talk about the payment issues they have been facing ever since the lockdown was imposed. Now, TV actor Saumya Tandon, who is best known for her act as Anita Bhabhi in popular TV show Bhabhiji Ghar Par Hain, has revealed her payments are also “severely delayed”, adding that she does not distrust the producers.

Saumya told an entertainment portal in an interview, “Our payments are also delayed. My payments are severely delayed. So, the payments are yet to be completely cleared. I don’t distrust them and I am sure they should and they would clear but yes, they are delayed. It is sad. They (actors) have their own rents, parents to look after. It is sad that the payments are delayed. I don’t know what is the reason behind it, a lot of people say that the networks are also not getting money because of no advertisements but nevertheless, this is the payment of work done. We usually work on a 90 days credit period. The revenue of that work I assume is already there and ideally, it should be cleared. I can still sustain but many others can’t.”

Asked about rumours that actors may have to deal with pay cuts, given that everyone took a financial hit due to the lockdown, Saumya said, “I have already been asked for it and these are not actually things which have been finalised. I am still waiting for my payments to be completely cleared and production house to tell me what is the way ahead. I think they are all swimming in the water. The picture will be clear in the next 10 days.”

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Concerned about the safety of actors and technicians as they resume work, Saumya told a leading daily in an interview, “The guidelines say only 33% of a standard unit will be operational but I think everyone on set should be tested for Covid-19 even if they don’t show symptoms, so to eliminate any chances. There is no such point recommended in the guidelines.”

She further said, “The guidelines also say that everyone will be stationed where they are shooting. Moreover, we need to have a monitoring agency to ensure all the guidelines are followed by production houses. It will be upto the individuals to do their bit. Everyone is so desperate to get back to work as everyone is worried about their livelihoods that it can lead to lapses and carelessness. It is scary. The channel heads and creative teams won’t be on the sets while actors and unit members will be. So we have to take extra precautions.”

(Source: Pinkvilla/Hindustan Times)