Tamil film fraternity began a one-day strike on 2 April in a bid to show their support for Sri Lankan Tamils.
Several actors, producers, distributors and directors including superstar Rajinikanth, Ajith, Suriya, Karthi, Sarathkumar, Radhikaa, Vijayakumar, Chandrashekar, Radharavi, Nalini, Charlie and Manobala are taking part in the hunger strike. Universal star Kamla Haasan is expected to join the strike.
The actors are endorsing two resolutions passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly last week. The demands include economic sanctions against Sri Lanka (SL) for alleged war crimes committed and inflicted on Eelam Tamils by Sri Lankan Army and the Administrators and rehabilitation of Lankan Tamils, reported NDTV.
The film fraternity is showing their solidarity to SL Tamils, even as political leaders and students from different parts of Tamil Nadu are demanding the central government to harden its stance towards Sri Lanka over its treatment against the Tamil population, for the last few days.
In the wake of government's failure to pass any resolution against SL, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) withdrew its support to Congress-led UPA two weeks ago. At the UN session, India voted in favour of the US-sponsored resolution against the island nation. However, it did not move any amendments as demanded by the DMK party as well as other groups in Tamil Nadu.
The issue is also plaguing the Indian Premier League, with the Tamil Nadu chief minister refusing to host the Sri Lankan players in Chennai. This led the IPL governing council to disallow Sri Lanka players from playing matches in Chennai, citing security concerns.
The decision could take a toll on the players as well as the franchisees who have bid for the Lankan players. There are a total of 13 SL players in eight different IPL teams.
