There seems to be no let up in the controversy surrounding the boycott of Manoj Mishra as the MINDGAME actor on Monday responded to the appeal for a truce from actor Arindam Roy. Mishra said he is ready to sit for a discussion only after Tutu Nayak’s clarification on what grounds he was boycotted.
Addressing a press conference yesterday, actor Arindam Roy, whose film RAM was recently released, appealed to Mishra to bury the hatchet and work together for the betterment of the Odia film industry. The former had also asked the latter to resolve the issue through discussions.
While responding to Arindam’s appeal, Mishra on Monday said, “I am yet to understand what dispute you want to settle with me. I have not opposed the movie RAM. I have not asked anyone to stop the movie. Without any proof and information, Tutu Nayak and Company boycotted me. Due to this, my film MINDGAME has suffered a huge loss. If the film is going houseful at INOX, Cinepolis, and in Bargarh in the fourth week of its release, it means it would have been houseful across Odisha. Can you imagine Arindam, how much loss my producer has suffered due to Tutu Nayak?”
“If you actually want to end the discord, then you first ask Tutu Nayak to clarify the grounds on which boycotted me. Then he should make sure that all cinema halls run the shows of MINDGAME. Then we will sit to find out a solution, though I don’t know what is there to be sorted out,” said Mishra.
The controversy kicked off when the president of the Utkal Cine Chambers of Commerce (UCCC), Sanjay Nayak, also known as Tutu Nayak, announced that they had evidence that Manoj Mishra was responsible for the protest against the film RAM featuring Arindam and Anubhav in Sambalpur, for which he has been boycotted by a group of producers for a period of two years.
Later in the day, the cine producers’ association, while addressing a press conference in Bhubaneswar, announced that the boycott decision on Manoj Mishra will not be lifted for the time being.
"The boycott decision has not been taken in any Kangaroo court. It is our decision. He is not keen to resolve the issue because he is not coming for a discussion. Now he is using it for publicity," said the association.
However, the Odia Film Producers’ and Distributors’ Guild has opposed the boycott of actor Manoj Mishra. Secretary of Odia Film Producers’ and Distributors’ Guild, Arun Mohanty said, "We don’t accept the reported boycott on Manoj Mishra. We demand that the boycott should be revoked immediately.”
On the other hand, actor Arindam Roy once again appealed to Manoj Mishra in his Facebook post to take steps to end the row. He urged Mishra not to support a bandh called on November 15.