Rs 1500 monthly honorarium demanded for Marathi film veterans

Kolhapur, Feb 27 (UNI) Marathi film veteran artistes should be given Rs 1500 as monthly honorarium, Ajay Sarpotdar, President, Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Chitrapat Mahamandal(ABMCM) today demanded.

Addressing a press conference here, Mr Sarpotdar said film veteran s presently get from the Maharashtra government an amount of Rs 500 as monthly honorarium, which is quite 'inadequate'.''It is need of the hour to hike the honorarium at least upto rs 1500 to them,''he said.

Marathi film industry completed 75 years due to the yeoman service rendered by these veteran artistes. Despite this, the state government showed apathy towards the artistes welfare, he lamented.

He has brought this issue to the notice of Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, state Finance Minister Jayant Patil. While the ABMCM will also write letters to all the MLAs in the state to support the old artistes honorarium hike issue, he informed.

UNI