The incident took place in Raigad district. (Express photo)
Two students of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) had a narrow escape when the 22-foot-high crane they were sitting on came crashing down during a film shoot in Raigad district’s Diveagar on Saturday. One of them, Anuj Ujawane, sustained a collarbone fracture while another, Satish Kumar, sustained internal injuries. Two other crew members also sustained minor injuries.
An ARRI 535 analogous camera, which costs an estimated Rs 80 lakh to 1 crore, was also damaged in the accident. The students were shooting their diploma film project and had started the shoot in Diveagar on September 24. They alleged that they were supplied sub-standard equipment by a private agency, and FTII authorities had done nothing despite their complaints.
“Part of the shooting equipment was hired from a private agency… the equipment supplied was of sub-standard quality. We have raised this issue multiple times. In fact, on Friday night, we had written to the FTII director and others about the sub-standard equipment. The authorities didn’t take any action and as a result, this accident took place,” said a crew member.
The shoot has been halted and the students are on their way to Pune. Vishnu Hari, a cinematography student of the 2013 batch who was part of the crew, said, “We were forced to shoot with faulty, sub-standard equipment despite raising concerns…”
FTII Director Bhupendra Kainthola said the institute authorities were looking into the incident. “We are in the process of collecting more information… the matter will be looked into, to determine the exact cause of the mishap, and whether the equipment hired from the vendor was the cause. I am told that the students’ unit had personally gone to the supplier’s godown to check the condition of the equipment before the shoot. The equipment was ordered from the local vendor only after the students’ approval. Still, if equipment quality was the reason behind the mishap, the vendor can’t be absolved of responsibility,“ he said.