Tele Makers Guild (TMG) handed over a petition to President Mahinda Rajapaksa complaining on the threat to teledrama industry on the wake of increasing Mega play or multi-episode, long dragging tele serials recently.

Artistes who met the President

The petition with thousands of signatures by the artistes and public who gathered at the Public Library Colombo on June 5 was handed over to the President by the president of the Guild, film and teledrama director, Sudath Rohana and other office bearers.

On the invitation from the President, a meeting was summoned for the teledrama artistes and the ministers and the heads of the state run television channels.

Representing the TMG, its secretary Douglas Siriwardena and committee members Amiththa Weerasinghe, Priya Ranasinghe, Wasantha Chandrasiri, Sunil Ratnayake and Satichandra Edirisinghe participated while Minister of Information and Mass Communication, Anura Priyadharshana Yapa, Chairman of Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation (SLRC), Ariyaratne Athugala and Chairman of the Independent Television Network (ITN), Anura Siriwardena were among the others who attended the meeting at Temple Trees.

At the meeting President Rajapaksa had undertaken not to telecast 'Mega dramas' on Rupavahini channel, dedicate one of the two prime time belt 7.30 pm to 8 .00pm and 8.00 pm to 8.30 pm on ITN for limited episode teledramas and to limit the number of episodes of the mega dramas that are now being telecast on ITN, TMG said.

At this meeting Secretary of the Ministry of Information and Mass Communication was instructed to summon a meeting with the heads of the private television channels and TMG to find solution for the problem.