Ram Gopal Varma banned by artist's union for non-payment of ₹1.25 cr dues

FWICE has banned its 32 unions from working with filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma, after he refused to make payments amounting to ₹1.25 crore to artists and technicians he had worked with.

Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma has been banned for life by the Federation of West Indian Cine Employees, which comprises of 32 unions. The decision was taken after RGV failed to pay dues of ₹1.25 crore to artistses and technicians.

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FWICE has said they sent several letters to the filmmaker that he refused to accept. They even sent him a legal notice seeking payments of the dues, before imposing the ban.

FWICE president BN Tiwari said in a statement, “We sent a letter to the Chief Minister of Goa on September 10, 2020, regarding this. We wanted Ram Gopal Varma to clear the dues of poor technicians, artistes and workers but he never did. Hence, we have decided to not work with him in the future. We have also notified Indian Motion Pictures Producers' Association (IMPPA) and Producers Guild of India (GUILD), among other unions about this.” Attempts to reach the filmmaker went unanswered.

Meanwhile, RGV announced a new film on Twitter. "THRILLED to announce the release of 1st look poster of my life time dream project dayafter JAN 15 th 11 AM ..Produced by SPARK COMPANY @SparkSagar1 , It is the true story behind the rise of DAWOOD IBRAHIM head of the WORLD’S most DREADED organisation," he tweeted Wednesday afternoon.

RGV's latest film, 12’0 clock, marked his return to the horror genre. However, the film did not get a good reception and was widely panned by critics. "Horror stories are set in isolated places like a haunted house. 12’o Clock is the story of a middle-class family. Even though we have used night effect, no one is really alone here," he had told Deccan Chronicle about the film. He is currently shooting a film with Aprsara Rani in Goa.