united front: Actors Prosenjit and Jeet arrive at Nandan to meet the chief minister on Tuesday evening. Picture by Aranya Sen

Satyajit Ray shot portions of Pather Panchali here. Uttam Kumar gave his last shot for Ogo Bodhu Sundari here. Amitabh Bachchan had come visiting right after the success of Do Anjaane. With three floors, 14 make-up rooms and a rich history, Technician Studio is synonymous with Tollywood.

The studio, spread over seven acres in Tollygunge, was busy with a film shoot and three serials when a privatisation proposal from Zee Movies sent the film fraternity into a tizzy.

After last week’s meeting at Writers’ Buildings, film-makers Rituparno Ghosh and Goutam Ghose, actors Soumitra Chatterjee, Prosenjit and Jeet, along with producers and members of the Eastern India Motion Pictures Association, met Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee at Nandan on Tuesday evening to brief the chief minister about their apprehensions.

“We told the chief minister Technician is very important for Bengali films. It is our working space. We also have emotional ties with the place,” said Rituparno Ghosh.

According to Tollywood sources, Bhattacharjee has said that Technician will not be dismantled for now.

“The CM has assured us he will look into the matter,” Ghosh said.

The property was leased to Zee Movies a couple of weeks back, but the final agreement is yet to be signed.

“We are not against modernisation, but against Zee’s proposal to build a three-storeyed building, which will hamper our shoots,” said Goutam Ghose.

“Where will we shoot our serials and films if the studio infrastructure is dismantled immediately? We will form a committee and give another presentation to the government within a fortnight,” said Prosenjit.

Tollywood is also anticipating a fee hike if Zee acquires Technician.

“We pay Rs 5,000 for a day and bargain for a discount if the shoot spans more than 10 days. We’ve heard that a day’s rent will go up to Rs 25,000 if Zee takes over. But Bengali films are made on a limited budget,” a producer pointed out. “Zee Movies has plans of producing 12 films in a year, so when will we shoot our films?” he asked.

Amidst the hullabaloo, Rajib Chatterjee of Zee Movies said: “We can’t say anything now. We will take another week to sort things out.”