Veteran Bollywood actress and Rajya Sabha member Jaya Bachchan Jaya Bachchan on Tuesday made a request in the Parliament urging Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to show “mercy” toward the faltering film industry and present plans to keep it
While raising concerns over the Union Budget 2025-2026, the Samajwadi Party member alleged that the government is trying to “kill” the film industry.
Addressing the Rajya Sabha, Jaya Bachchan claimed, “One industry has been totally ignored by you, and other governments were also doing the same thing. But today you have taken it to the next level. You have totally ignored the film and entertainment industry because you only use them for serving your own purpose.”
She added, “Today, leave aside GST; all the single screens (theaters) are shutting down. People are not going to movie halls because everything has become so costly. Perhaps you want to kill this industry altogether.”
The veteran actress continued by saying, “I am speaking on behalf of my film industry and making a request to this House on behalf of the audio-visual industry, that please spare them. Please have some mercy for them. You are trying to kill this industry. Please do not do this. Today you have started targeting cinema also.”
She then sought help from the Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, asking her to help the industry to survive and take it seriously.