Chiranjeevi denies meeting film federation amid Telugu industry strikes, slams ‘baseless' claims

Indian Express

3 days ago

Amid the ongoing tensions in the Telugu film industry, megastar Chiranjeevi has refuted claims of his involvement with the dispute. Chiranjeevi slammed the false information shared by individuals claiming to be members of the Film Federation that he met with the protesting workers and offered assurances over their demands.
'It has come to my attention that some individuals claiming to be the members of the Film Federation have gone to the media falsely claiming that I have met them and given an assurance that their demands regarding a 30 per cent wage hike, etc., shall be met and that I will be starting shooting very soon. I wish to set the record straight that I have not met anyone from the federation. This is an industry issue and no individual, including me, can give any unilateral assurances to solve any problem one way or the other,' the actor wrote on X.
He noted that the Telugu Film Chamber of Commerce is the apex body of the Telugu film industry, and only the chamber would engage in discussions related to the concerns and arrive at a solution.
'Until such time, making such false claims is unacceptable. I condemn all such baseless and motivated claims to create confusion among all stakeholders. Please note,' Chiranjeevi strongly asserted.
It has come to my attention that some individuals claiming to be the members of the Film Federation have gone to media falsely claiming that I have met them and given an assurance that their demands regarding 30% wage hike etc., shall be met and that I will be starting shooting…
— Chiranjeevi Konidela (@KChiruTweets) August 9, 2025
Earlier this month, the film chamber had issued a strict directive, stating that members of the Telugu Industry Film Employees' Federation have demanded a 30 per cent wage increase.
'We have already been paying much higher than the existing minimum wages as per the act to both skilled and unskilled workers. This disruption will cause heavy damage to films in production. Chamber condemns this action taken by Federation as we have worked together with their members for decades,' the directive read.
Telugu Film Chamber of Commerce take on Federation demand #TFCC #Tollywood pic.twitter.com/51ZovwizK1
— Telugu Film Producers Council (@tfpcin) August 3, 2025
Mentioning that the chamber has been in talks with the relevant authorities to secure a sustainable solution, they asked producers to strictly avoid independent action or separate arrangements with unions until resolution