Sandra Thomas runs for president of producers association; wears 'purdah' to file nomination
Kochi, Jul 26 (PTI): Noted woman producer Sandra Thomas on Saturday filed her nomination to contest for the post of president in the Kerala Film Producers' Association (KFPA).
Thomas, who arrived wearing a 'purdah' at the KFPA office here, told reporters she was contesting for the post of president as changes are required in the association, which has been continuing as "a monopoly" of a few individuals.
She said that she decided to wear a 'purdah' to the office of the KFPA for filing her nomination as she felt it was the most appropriate attire in view of her past experience with those in the organisation.
"It is also a mark of protest against the fact that the four persons against whom I lodged a complaint and who have been named in a chargesheet submitted in court by the police, are still continuing as office bearers of the organisation and are contesting for the executive committee posts," she claimed.
She also alleged that the association was not a safe place for women and the 'purdah' was the best attire to wear to the KFPA.
Thomas alleged that those at the helm of affairs at the association were not fit to lead it as they were only concerned with using the KFPA for their personal gains and not for the benefit of its members.
She said that if she wins, she will ensure that all those producers, in the association, who have not got a chance to make a movie till now, get the opportunity to do so.
Thomas said if changes occur in the producers association, it will indirectly bring a change to the entire film industry.
Thomas was expelled from the KFPA in November last year on charges of breaching organisational discipline and norms, but the association's decision was put on hold by an Ernakulam court in December 2024.
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Indigo flights chaos: SCR to run special trains to clear passenger rush
Hyderabad (PTI): The South Central Railway on Saturday announced that it would run four special trains to manage the surge in passengers resulting from the large-scale cancellation of IndiGo flights here.
The move comes as flyers face significant disruption and long queues at the airport due to the cancellation.
A press release from the SCR said it is running the special trains to clear the extra rush of passengers to Chennai, Mumbai and Shalimar (Kolkata) from Hyderabad today.
Meanwhile, as many as 43 outbound Indigo flights were cancelled from here on Saturday, Rajiv Gandhi International Airport sources said.
ALSO READ: IndiGo cancels over 200 flights from Delhi, Mumbai on Saturday
Similarly, 26 incoming flights are also likely to be cancelled during the day, they said.
The flight cancellations drew ire from passengers, who thronged the IndiGo counters at the airport demanding to know the exact situation.
“This is utter nonsense! Digiyatra done, message received that departure has been rescheduled ahead of the scheduled departure and now upon arriving at Hyderabad airport coming to know at the security checkpoint that Indigo flight is cancelled,” Tarun Singha, former Ministry of Defence spokesperson said in a post on X.
“But the thing is if you don’t shout they do nothing. Example at Hyderabad Airport, there was no staff no flight information for an hour. Then a fellow passenger started shouting on mic and an Indigo staff appeared finally,” a netizen said in a post.
On Friday, when IndiGo cancelled over 1,000 flights from across airports, its CEO Pieter Elbers apologised in a video message for the major inconvenience caused to passengers due to the disruptions.
In the one-way video communication, Elbers also said that the airline was expecting fewer than 1,000 flights on Saturday.
