Makers of Prabhas' The Raja Saab break silence on workers' payment issues after legal trouble, acknowledge pending wages

In its statement, The Raja Saab producer PMF wrote in detail about the pending payment. PMF also slammed self-proclaimed federation/union leaders.

People Media Factory (PMF), the producers of The Raja Saab, have issued a statement on workers' payment issues. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), the production house of the Prabhas-starrer said that in the past year, approximately ₹60 crore has been disbursed towards daily wage workers. It added that "around ₹1 crore remains payable." It criticised "unrelated individuals" for making public statements regarding internal company payments. The horror-comedy found itself in legal trouble recently after Delhi-based Ivy Entertainment filed a case against People Media Factory.

The Raja Saab, starring Prabhas, will release in December this year.

The Raja Saab producers shares statement on workers' payment issues

In its statement, PMF wrote in detail about the pending payment. "People Media Factory has disbursed approximately ₹60 crores over the past 12 months towards daily wage workers engaged in BTL/production activities. In addition, around ₹1 crore remains payable in relation to schedules worked during July. This amount of ₹60 crore does not include monthly contract associates who are on monthly remuneration across various crafts, which accounts for an additional ₹30 crores. These contract associates' payments are fully current. Furthermore, this figure excludes the remunerations of key technicians, artists, vendors, VFX teams, and location-related expenses."

People Media Factory acknowledges pending payments to workers

PMF also slammed self-proclaimed federation/union leaders. "It is therefore both inaccurate and inappropriate for unrelated individuals or self-proclaimed federation/union leaders to make public statements regarding internal company payments. People Media Factory has no agreements or financial obligations with any federations/unions and consequently holds no dues to them. That said, PMF fully acknowledges the limited pending payments to workers from the July schedule, which were payable at the commencement of the next schedule as per our policy, which is also widely followed in the film industry," it further read.

When will workers get their dues

PMF announced that it will make the pending payments directly to workers' bank accounts. "The delay has occurred due to the unavailability of workers over the past two weeks, due to the sudden strike, and as the next schedule did not commence. Taking into consideration the difficulties being faced by our persons who have worked for us, we have decided to make exception to the policy and make the payments this week," it added.

"To ensure greater transparency and to eliminate past malpractices of routing payments through representatives, all payments will henceforth be made directly to workers into their bank accounts. PMF will not release funds to intermediaries under any circumstance," it further said.

"Workers with pending dues from the July schedule are requested to follow the below process: Submit their requests and complete the enrollment process with accurate bank details. Ensure the information reaches their respective Executive Producers (EPs) by Monday. Upon verification, payments will be disbursed within the same week. PMF appreciates the cooperation of its teams and looks forward to resuming work with everyone very soon," concluded its note. PMF also shared a chart on the due wages.

The caption read, “People Media Factory has disbursed ₹60 Cr+ towards daily wage workers in the last 12 months. We stand by every worker and ensure their hard work is rewarded with dignity.”

Why PMF landed in legal trouble

Last week, The Economic Times reported that Ivy Entertainment filed a case in the Delhi High Court against PMF over alleged contractual breaches in the film's production.

The report stated, “PMF failed to meet critical obligations including completing and releasing the film on time, providing monthly production updates, disclosing fund utilisation, delivering agreed materials relating to the film and delaying the theatrical release multiple times."

About The Raja Saab

The Raja Saab will release in theatres on December 5. The movie is directed by Maruthi and produced by TG Vishwa Prasad under People Media Factory's banner. The film also stars Sanjay Dutt, Malavika Mohanan, Nidhhi Agerwal, and Ridhi Kumar in prominent roles. The movie is set to have a pan-India release in Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, and Malayalam.