Beyond the Glamour: Tollywood Workers Strike Against Unfair Wages, Demand Dignity

Hyderabad: Under the scorching Hyderabad sun, a film set lies eerily silent. The towering lights are switched off, makeup chairs sit empty and half-built sets gather dust. The people who usually bring these spaces to life – the men hauling cables, the women blending foundation under a filmstar’s jawline, the carpenters who hammer dreams into wood – are gone. 

For more than 10 days, the beating heart of the Telugu film industry, also known as Tollywood, has stopped. It is not because the cameras broke, nor because the stars are unavailable. It’s because the thousands of invisible hands that make cinema possible have put up a protest. The Telugu Film Industry Employees’ Federation (TFIEF), a coalition of 24 unions representing thousands of daily wage workers, has walked out demanding more than just a pay hike. They are demanding dignity. They are demanding to be seen.

This is not a story of a few disgruntled employees but a seismic protest that exposes the deep, systemic inequalities that plague not only Tollywood but India's entire film ecosystem. The dispute, at its core, is a battle for a fair share of the industry's burgeoning profits and a demand for dignity that has long been denied.

The unjust divide

The TFIEF's central demand is a 30% increase in wages of the film crew, a figure they argue is a necessity, not a luxury. For the last three years, daily wages for many workers have remained stagnant despite the skyrocketing cost of living in Hyderabad. 

An entry-level worker today earns as little as Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,500 per day. When compared to the astronomical sums paid to the industry's biggest stars, this amount is not just meager; it's a profound injustice. While an actor like Allu Arjun commands a fee of Rs 300 crore per film and top-tier actors like Mahesh Babu and Ram Charan charge Rs 100 crore, the vast majority of the crew – the light boys, makeup artists and set designers, who form the backbone of any film – are struggling to make ends meet. 

“If we don’t go to work, we don’t get paid. These few days without shooting are hard on our families. Still, we believe that unless we stand up now, our future will only get tougher with prices going up everywhere,” Satish, a light boy, tells The Wire. 

The fight for dignity and welfare

The workers' demands extend beyond a simple hike in their paycheck. They are fighting for timely payments, a perennial issue in the industry where delays in payment often push workers into financial precarity. They are demanding a system that ensures their wages are paid on a daily or weekly basis. 

Furthermore, they seek a robust welfare and security system. The absence of such a system means that in the event of an accident or illness on set, workers are often left to their own devices, without insurance or adequate compensation. The producers, represented by the Telugu Film Chamber of Commerce (TFCC), have rejected the 30% hike, calling it "unviable" and pointing to the financial struggles of smaller production houses. 

They have offered a conditional, phased increase for lower-paid workers, a proposal the federation has rejected, calling it an attempt to create divisions within their ranks. 

A history of unrest

The current strike is not an isolated event but part of a recurring cycle of labor unrest in Tollywood. The industry has witnessed similar protests in 2004, 2010, and 2017. A previous agreement stipulated a wage review every five years, but its implementation has been consistently poor, leading to a breakdown of trust between the workers and the producers. 

This historical pattern of broken promises and unfulfilled agreements is a crucial element of the current standoff. Reflecting this sentiment, TFIEF president Anil Kumar Vallabhaneni says that the workers were forced into action despite their reluctance.

“Shutting down the industry was never our goal. We only asked for a 30 percent hike and were willing to settle for less. But the producers’ divisive tactics leave us no choice. We are standing firm not for individual gain but for the livelihood of nearly 10,000 families. It is with a heavy heart that we have withdrawn our labour,” he says.

Producers' tactics and responses

In a controversial move, the TFCC passed a resolution allowing producers to hire non-union workers to keep the shoots running. This tactic, however, has been met with resistance from the federation, which has warned that such an approach will only deepen the divide. 

The legal complexities surrounding this move are also significant, with the TFCC citing a Competition Commission of India (CCI) ruling that prevents unions from imposing anti-competitive practices. However, the practical challenge of replacing thousands of skilled union workers overnight remains a significant hurdle. 

As the deadlock dragged on, the chamber’s stance grew sharper. In a resolution passed unanimously, it gave producers the green light to bypass the unions altogether and bring in outside workers. Several members privately questioned why technicians should have to “pay lakhs of rupees” just to access a job in the industry, a practice they described as entrenched and exploitative.

No voice, however, has been as combative as that of T.G. Vishwa Prasad, the producer behind People Media Factory, one of Telugu cinema’s most prolific banners in recent years. He has taken the unprecedented step of issuing legal notices to union leaders, accusing them of operating “like a cartel” that uses coercion to control hiring. Vishwa Prasad has repeatedly warned that stalled productions are costing him “over a crore a day,” and has framed the fight as one not against local talent but against what he calls an entrenched system of gatekeeping.

“There is no question of undermining Hyderabad’s workforce. The majority of our crews are drawn from here,” he said, stressing that nearly two-thirds of Telugu cinema’s labour force is homegrown. “But when a newcomer is forced to pay anywhere between Rs 5 to 7 lakh (to the crew) just to step into the industry, how can fresh talent survive? How can we talk of skill development if entry itself is priced out?”

Amid stalemate, Chiranjeevi steps in

For weeks, the standoff between producers and cine workers seemed to have reached a deadlock, with both sides digging in. Then came an unexpected entrant, Chiranjeevi. At first, the veteran actor and former Union minister distanced himself from the dispute, dismissing talk of backroom mediation as “baseless”. 

He insisted that wage negotiations were the responsibility of the TFCC, not individuals, even those with his stature in the industry. But as tempers rose and fears of a prolonged strike mounted, Chiranjeevi quietly shifted gears. 

On August 18, he hosted nearly 70 members of the Federation at his Hyderabad residence, listening to their concerns first-hand. Workers reiterated their demand for a 30% flat wage hike across departments, rejecting the producers’ phased proposal as inadequate. For many, the issue is existential: daily-wage incomes in Tollywood have not kept pace with the rising costs of living in Hyderabad and other production hubs. Producer C. Kalyan, who participated in parallel talks, described Chiranjeevi’s intervention as “an attempt to safeguard both, the livelihoods of workers and the continuity of shoots.” 

“Wages in Hyderabad are already higher than in Mumbai or Chennai, but even so, we are willing to consider a fair hike,” he says. 

“At the same time, producers are insisting on 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. call sheets. Some categories like dancers and fighters have already agreed to this, and I will be speaking with other unions about extending the same practice.” Kalyan adds. 

Mounting pressure

The stalemate has a ripple effect, causing significant financial losses and delaying major projects. With films like Pawan Kalyan’s They Call Him OG and Balakrishna's Akhanda 2: Thaandavam hanging in the balance, the pressure is mounting on all stakeholders. 

While top stars like Chiranjeevi have publicly stated that the matter must be handled by the Film Chamber, the lack of direct intervention from the industry's biggest names has been noted by many. The solution to this crisis requires a fundamental shift in the industry's mindset. It calls for the producers, actors and directors to move beyond the narrow focus on individual profits and to address the systemic injustices that exist within the industry.

The Tollywood strike is a national wake-up call and a reminder that behind every dazzling film is an army of hardworking individuals whose labour is often undervalued and underpaid. Their fight is for a more just and equitable film industry, one that respects the dignity of every person who contributes to the magic of cinema.

Balakrishna M. is a senior journalist.

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