The ongoing rift between TFPC and digital service providers has not come to an end, and a section of the audience seems to have lost interest in following up about the strike and the progress of cinema.
In an exclusive interview with Behindwoods, RJ Balaji explained his thoughts about the same. "Earlier, when a strike or a bandh used to happen, the frequency was very less. Not just cinema, even in general, like petrol bunks strike, bus drivers strike, etc. Over the course of time, a strike has lost its impact since each and every industry announces a strike when they don't get what they want. Not going to work, is something that is not good, and people do not like it. They'd, in fact, get angry about it.
About the TFPC's strike, personally, I feel they have decided to solve an issue, that has been prevailing for the past few years. People do not worry about the 5 lakh people who work in the back end of a film. They don't care about the technicians and daily wage workers. All they see is actors like Rajini, Kamal, Vijay, Ajith, Suriya, Vishal. People see that all these stars are still wealthy, rich, and travel in luxurious cars. So they feel, cinema is not in danger. They will not know the impact.
Also now, people have all other options to explore during this strike. I happened to see Black Panther recently in a theatre, and even after so many days, the show was houseful. So, people have started to access other language films, when there are no new Tamil releases.
Every single person has Internet these days, and the access has become easier. They decide to watch a show, or a web series, or movies, through online digital platforms like Netflix, Amazon, etc. There is also YouTube. So many other visual mediums are there for people to consume.
By the time, the strike could come to an end, IPL would start, and everyone's focus will shift towards that. As far as the public is concerned, they have entertainment in various ways, and we can't expect them to sympathize for cinema strike.
I hope everything is solved as soon as possible so that we can give films for our audience", said RJ Balaji.