AMWJU, EGM boycott Shumang Lila Council

By Our Staff Reporter
IMPHAL, Mar 22: Taking strong exception to the Manipur State Shumang Lila Council’s demand to ISTV Network, Impact TV and TOM TV to pay Rs 50,000 each if they wish to telecast the ongoing Shumang Lila festival, the All Manipur Working Journalists’ Union (AMWJU) and Editors’ Guild Manipur (EGM) have decided to boycott all activities of the Manipur State Shumang Lila Council.
A joint meeting of AMWJU and EGM was held today at Manipur Press Club and the meeting resolved that the attempt of Manipur State Shumang Lila Council to give a seeming exclusive (telecasting) rights to some selected individuals/groups contradicts an earlier decision adopted by AMWJU and EGM.
AMWJU and EGM maintained that all the people have the right to information on the Government, Government-aided organisations as well as State level programmes organised with Government funding. AMWJU and EGM had already resolved that it would boycott and fight any initiative which is aimed at giving exclusive right of such programmes to some particular individuals or groups.
Even though Shumang Lila/Phampak Lila/Eshei Lila is there since many, many years back, local cable TV networks have been working hard to promote the particular art form without charging any money.
However, some officials of the Manipur State Shumang Lila Council have been trying to malign the cordial relationship shared between Shumang Lila parties and local cable TV networks, AMWJU and EGM decried.
Shumang Lilas are telecast in local cable TV networks free of cost in public interest with due permission of the Shumang Lila parties concerned after the plays had been performed live at different localities and CDs had been sold at markets, said the two scribes’ bodies.
They reiterated that they would boycott all activities of the Manipur State Shumang Lila Council with immediate effect until the council’s demand to local TV networks is withdrawn, and tender an apology.