The queen has arrived on the sets. She is fixing her golden hairband, the tiara, the waistband and running her painted nails on a piece of paper. She murmurs a few lines as she walks towards the floor. The lights focus on her, the camera starts to roll and she takes you into a fantasy world.

Later, once she is done with her day's work in a Bengali mega serial, the actor says, "Don't believe what you see here, our world outside the sets is very different and...," she pauses and adds, "dark".

Last month, the seamy side of Calcutta's studio para, or the Tollygunge area where most mega serials are shot, its innards as it were, came spilling out for all to see. Agitated actors demanded their dues, producers refused to give in, and all shooting came to a halt. And that's the way it remained for six whole days, allegations flying, acrimony swirling, dissension upon dissension, a temporary death of entertainment and in its place, an ugly reality show.

On screen, actors apologised for this unwanted first such disruption in the Bengali television industry. Off-screen, though, they hailed their protest as being "revolutionary". Alleges an actor who played a king in a period drama, "The producers think they are emperors and we are slaves, and they are doing us a favour by giving us roles."

The list of complaints is long - irregular pay, long working hours, no overtime, no defined breaks and rank poor working conditions.

The television industry in Bengal has an annual turnover of over Rs 800 crore. "The regional market has seen phenomenal growth," says Mahendra Soni, co-founder of SVF Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. Mega grossers such as Jai Kali Kalkattawali and Gopal Bhar on Star Jalsha are from the SVF stable.

Lead actors of these serials enjoy huge stardom but they live a life full of uncertainties, as it turns out.

First, the pay issue. Mostly, stars, lead actors and senior actors sign contracts with channels or producers for anything between Rs 1.5 lakh and Rs 8 lakh. A contract is usually for the life of the show and the monthly payment follows a 23-day schedule.

Producers invest Rs 2-3 crore for the first 60 episodes and the channels pay after they submit the CDs of the 19-minute episodes shot over 60 days, backed with requisite bills. When the producers start delivering the episodes, the channels release the money on the 7th and 22nd of every month. Actors allege that producers - those in the middle and lower brackets - hold back the money, often for months. "Producers enjoy a leeway of 15 days. They are allowed to pay us the last month's remuneration on the 15th of the new month. Why delay further then," asks an actor.

Senior technicians complain about poor pay - they get anything between Rs 80,000 and Rs 1.5 lakh for a 23-day schedule. No overtime benefits. Junior technicians get Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 for 10 hours, but get overtime fees. All technicians went on protest in July, refused to work beyond 14 hours a day - including four hours of overtime - and raised the demand for a 30 per cent pay hike, which was met. According to the new rule, technicians won't work beyond 14 hours.

The other big issue: interminable work hours. When a serial takes off, it takes three to four days to can one episode. But later, one-episode-and-a-half is shot within a day or 10-14 hours. One actor says, "A 19-minute episode is shot in 10-12 hours but often producers shoot for 18-20 hours for a final product of 40 minutes." He adds, "The extra 21 minutes are done using the same pool of resources."

Veteran actor Sabitri Chatterjee, who plays the outspoken Sabu in Star Jalsha's Kusum Dola, says: "After long hours of shoot, art and creativity get compromised." At 81, Chatterjee shoots 10 hours a day for TV serials.

In their defence, producers say the work gets stretched in a mythological serial, where make-up is time consuming. Delay also happens because they need approval from the channels for everything, from promos to sets, from dialogues to hair-styling, and that too on a daily basis.

Other actors allege that production units apprise them about the next day's call time (scheduled appearance) not before 1.30am and even then shoots rarely start on time.

The working conditions also come up time and again. Studio floors turned air-conditioned five years ago, but a common complaint is the poor condition of the restrooms. Junior artistes suffer the most. During outdoor shoots, they are the last to be served food, there are no seating arrangements for them and they get the worst possible accommodation during an overnight stay. Likewise for junior technicians.

In all this chaos, aesthetics and creativity take a beating. On this, producers point channelwards. If a channel has purchased the copyright of one or more songs, it would want producers to incorporate them, at any cost. If a channel wants a wedding or festival put in, one has to comply.

Producers have their own list of counter cribs. They allege that stars never report on time, take multiple assignments, and quit serials midway. They complain about the high-handedness of technicians.

The Federation of Cine Technicians and Workers of Eastern India, the umbrella body of technicians and artistes headed by Trinamul leader Swarup Biswas, has been flexing its muscles much too often, claim producers. Says one such person who has close links with chief minister Mamata Banerjee, "The federation decides how many technicians are to be hired and, often, who to hire. Some technicians are Trinamul workers who just sit around and smoke on the sets but you cannot say anything."

Technicians and actors allege that producers run "syndicates" with the backing of politicians. Indranil Sen, minister of state for information and cultural affairs, denies this. "There is no extra support given to producers by the government," he says.

Actor Chandan Sen narrates how he came to be out of work for two years. He seems to think that it had to do with him being forthright about his political views. He says, "While I was shooting for Ishti Kutum on the outskirts of Calcutta, some men came over and asked me to quit the serial. I didn't, but soon after, I was dropped. In Bengal, you will not be allowed to work if you don't make your contribution to the political party. That's how the system works here."

Who knows it better than minister Sen? He tells The Telegraph, "It is Bengal, Madam, nothing and nobody is apolitical. Everybody is political, politically conscious."

The six-day strike was resolved on August 23 when the CM intervened. She formed a joint conciliation committee with members from the industry and ordered actors to resume shooting. The West Bengal Motion Picture Artists' Forum has stated that no actor will work beyond 10 hours and they have to be paid for every extra hour on a pro rata basis.

But this intervention has irked many. As one producer puts it, "The real problem is the CM's excessive interest in this industry." He points out how the industry is forced to shut shop every July 21, when actors have to mark their presence with Banerjee on the occasion of Shahid Diwas.

Indranil Sen denies any such diktat. He says, "The government gets involved only when there is a requirement to streamline things." But this streamlining is impacting art adversely. "When art and culture is politicised, they will get compromised," says a producer, known to be Banerjee's close aide.

In the meantime, on the floor, the queen has transformed into a demoness. Says the actor playing the role, " Eitai or ashol roop... That is her real image."