Tamil Nadu government on Monday announced 100 per cent occupancy in cinema halls. The announcement came ahead of the release of Vijay’s Master and Simbu’s Eeswaran. They are scheduled to hit the screens on January 13 and 14 respectively. The announcement received a mixed response from the public. Many hailed the order but others warned that it can increase the COVID-19 cases in the state.
Reacting to the announcement a doctor from Puducherry has penned an emotional letter to the Tamil Nadu government and also actors Vijay and Simbu.
Aravinth Srinivas, a doctor from Puducherry, has penned an open request to Vijay and Simbu. It is on the risk factors involved in allowing TN theatres to operate with 100 per cent occupancy. He requested Vijay and Simbu to reconsider the decision of releasing their films.
In his open letter, the doctor has written that thousands of doctors, police officials and frontline workers are tired due to the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic. He also claimed that the workers just want a small break which they deserve.
Here is what he wrote:
Aravinth wrote, “Dear Vijay sir, Silambarasan sir and the respected Tamil Nadu government. I am tired. We are all tired. Thousands of doctors like me are tired. Health care workers are tired. Police officials are tired. Sanitary workers are tired. We have worked so hard at the ground level to make sure the damage done is kept to as low as possible amidst an unprecedented pandemic. I am not glorifying our work for I know there is nothing so great about it to the onlooker’s eyes. We don’t have cameras in front of us. We don’t do stunt sequences. We aren’t heroes. But we deserve some time to breathe. We don’t want to fall prey to someone’s selfishness and greed.”
He added, “The pandemic isn’t over and we have people dying till today to the disease. A hundred per cent theatre occupancy is a suicide attempt. Rather homicide, for none of the policymakers or the so-called heroes are going to put themselves under the pump, to watch the movie amidst the crowd. This is a blatant barter system, trading lives for money. Can we please slowly try and concentrate on our lives and make sure we tide through this pandemic peacefully and not reignite the slowly burning out flame, that is still not completely put out? I wanted to make this post scientific and explain why we are still in danger. But that’s when I asked myself, “what’s the point?” Yours tiredly. A poor, tired resident doctor (sic).”
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Also Read: Tamil Nadu Government To Now Allow Full Capacity For Movie Screenings At Theatres