After Ranbir Kapoor’s Mumbai film set catches fire, FWICE demands enquiry: ‘What if mishap occurred with 1000 workers’

The sets of Luv Ranjan’s upcoming movie, which was built at Chitrakoot Ground in Mumbai, recently caught fire. The untitled film stars Ranbir Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor in lead roles. As per reports, the sets of a Rajshri Production film were also gutted in the fire. Now, the general secretary of FWICE (Federation of Western India Cine Employees) has said that the federation will write a letter to Maharashtra chief minister and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to ensure safety of workers and technicians. Raising concern over the Chitrakoot fire, he said it would have been disastrous if hundreds of workers and technicians would have been on the film sets, when the mishap happened. Read more: One dead in fire on set of Ranbir Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor’s film

On Friday, a fire broke out at film sets installed at Chitrakoot Ground next to the Andheri Sports Complex, officials of Mumbai’s fire brigade department said. While initial reports said there were no injuries or deaths, it was later reported that one person, a 32-year-old man, was declared brought dead at the Cooper Hospital. Multiple news reports said that one of the sets on which the fire broke out was of Luv Ranjan’s project starring Ranbir and Shraddha. As per the reports, none of the actors were shooting at the time, but some crew members were present on the spot.

Now, FWICE general secretary Ashok Dubey has spoken about the mishap in a new interview with ETimes, and questioned what could have happened if a Ranbir and Shraddha Kapoor were filming with the crew on the set. He said, “There was no shoot going on when this incident occurred. One person lost his life. A film unit has 800-1000 workers and technicians, what if the mishap happened when the shoot was on? For the past 4-5 years, we have written letters to CM and fire authorities that proper investigations should be conducted at such places.”

He further pointed out why such incidents were happening at film studios. “These accidents are happening repeatedly. The one who built this studio floor had made two other studios that have been burnt to ashes in Bangur Nagar area in Goregaon West. We are now writing to the producers’ body that they must check whether a fire audit has been done before booking studio floors. The federation is issuing notices to producers’ body and production houses and also the chief minister stating that such unauthorised structures should be permitted to function without a fire audit and NOC. In the absence of fire audit and NOC, the federation will ask workers and technicians not to work at such studios,” Ashok Dubey said.

He also added that if the concerns raised by FWICE do not get restored, the federation will demand an inquiry from BMC and state government into multiple studios like the one in Chitrakoot.