Shooting for yet another Bengali film has been stalled because technicians allegedly refused to show up for work.

Filmmakers and technicians, owing allegiance to a federation presided over by a powerful Trinamool Congress leader, have been at loggerheads over the last several months. In July last year, the stand-off led to an impasse that crippled shooting in the studios for days.

An intervention by chief minister Mamata Banerjee had broken the deadlock, but it was only a momentary relief.

Director Kingshuk Dey’s film is the latest in a series of projects crippled allegedly by the federation in the past three months, ever since a section of filmmakers moved court against the alleged high-handedness of the federation.

The petitioners — Dey is one of them — alleged that they were being targeted for moving court.

Monday’s shoot was scheduled at a home at Vidyasagar Colony in the Baghajatin area. “I had given call time to the technicians by following all due procedures. But nobody turned up. I also requested the secretaries of the guilds to send replacements. There was no response,” Dey told Metro.

This is the latest in a series of projects to have been stalled allegedly at the behest of the Federation of Cine Technicians and Workers of Eastern India, headed by Swarup Biswas, brother of Aroop Biswas, a top leader of the Trinamool Congress and a senior minister in the state cabinet.

The Directors Association of Eastern India, of which Dey is a member, has been at the forefront of protests against the alleged high-handedness of the federation for “ruining” the work culture in the Bengali film industry.

A film helmed by Sudeshna Roy, secretary of the directors’ association, and a music video featuring Anirban Bhattacharya were among the projects recently stalled because of a no-show by technicians.

On April 3, filmmakers Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Anirban Bhattacharya, Sudeshna Roy, Indranil Roychowdhury and Kingshuk Dey were among 14 who filed a petition in Calcutta High Court.

On Monday, Bhattacharya told reporters that the petitioners were being targeted.

“The fight has been going on for almost a year. We had raised some questions about certain rules and regulations regarding jurisdiction. The questions remain. They have still not been answered. The space to discuss the questions has not been created. We must keep in mind that if a day’s shoot is scrapped, the technicians, who are on a daily contract, lose a day’s wage. The directors are not the only ones suffering losses. It is a serious issue. But no one seems bothered. No one is ready to discuss,” Bhattacharya said.

“The directors who moved court wanted discussions on the issues. When the discussions did not happen, they moved court. The moment they moved court, they were branded criminals. Let us see how long we have to bear this tag,” he added.

Bhattacharya and several other big names came together at a news conference on December 3, 2024, to allege that the federation’s dictatorial policies were damaging the industry. The federation was acting like a regulatory body without any such authority, they had alleged.

The high court has directed a senior government official to ensure that directors can work in Tollygunge “without any interference” and seek police help if needed.

On May 19, Justice Amrita Sinha of Calcutta High Court was hearing a contempt petition alleging that her earlier order, dated April 3, 2025, restraining the powerful technicians’ federation in Tollygunge from interfering with the independent functioning of directors was not being complied with.

Justice Sinha directed the secretary of the department of information and cultural affairs to ensure that the directors could work freely. The officer can seek police help if needed, Justice Sinha said.

On Monday, Dey told this newspaper that he would approach the secretary.