Amitabh Bachchan, Badshah forced to evacuate after Pati Patni Aur Panga 2 set fire smoke reached Kaun Banega Crorepati set; Hustle 5 finale disrupted
Here's the latest box office buzz making the rounds:
A fire broke out at Movie City in Goregaon East, Mumbai, on Monday afternoon, October 5, disrupting shoots on multiple television sets and forcing actors and crew members to evacuate. The fire started around 4 pm on the outer shade of a temporary setup being used for Pati Patni Aur Panga 2 , behind Prime Focus Studio. The smoke soon reached the adjoining sets of Hustle Season 5 and Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC).
Adding to this, Amitabh Bachchan, Badshah evacuated as Pati Patni Aur Panga 2 set catches fire; Hustle 5 finale disrupted, KBC 18 shoot halted. Nobody was injured. No shooting was scheduled on the Pati Patni Aur Panga 2 set when the fire broke out, which meant there were no artists or crew members working there at the time. However, the incident brought nearby shoots to a halt and once again raised questions about safety arrangements at Movie City.
Meanwhile, According to Times of India report, Ashok Dubey, President of the All India Movie Employees Confederation (AIFEC) and General Secretary of the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE), says the situation could have been much more serious had the Pati Patni Aur Panga 2 team been shooting.
Notably, “The shade on the Pati Patni Aur Panga set caught fire, and the smoke spread to the adjacent sets of Hustle 5 and Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC), forcing the crews to evacuate. Amit ji ( Amitabh Bachchan ) also had to step out of the KBC set because of the smoke, bringing the shoots to a halt for nearly an hour and a half. Fortunately, there was no shoot on the Pati Patni Aur Panga set; otherwise, it could have resulted in a major accident,” he shared.
As per the latest buzz, For Ashok, Monday's incident is another warning sign rather than a one-off accident. He shared fires have been reported at shooting locations with increasing frequency and that concerns around basic safety checks have not received enough attention.
In further updates, He pointed out that fires on sets have become a routine occurrence rather than an exception. He recalled an incident roughly ten days earlier at Royal Palms, where a fire triggered by a short circuit broke out just as a shoot was set to commence. He stressed that he has consistently advocated for structural audits, fire compliance and safety inspections on sets, yet his appeals have gone unheeded, with no one appearing to prioritise the safety of those working on them. He concluded that no sum of money can ever make up for a life lost.
On top of that, He added that the federation had already taken up the issue with officials, including the labour department, BMC and fire authorities. According to him, the discussions were meant to create a system where sets could be inspected and working conditions checked before productions began.
“We had meetings involving the labour officer, BMC officials and the federation's health and safety team, which was supposed to inspect sets and assess how work was being carried out. I have been writing to the fire department and the Chief Minister for many years. We can't wait for a major tragedy to happen before swinging into action. We wrote to the Chief Fire Officer and the BMC two days ago, and we will be writing again, asking them to look into this concern. We also met Ashish Shelar ji, Cabinet Minister for Information Technology and Cultural Affairs, Government of Maharashtra, a while ago regarding how every set could be inspected and safety protocols followed, which turned out to be quite positive. We are hoping that action will soon be initiated and that the necessary steps will be taken,” he added.
Source: Hindustan Times