MUMBAI: Director and producer Aditya Chopra who is the current Chairman of film and media company Yash Raj Films (YRF), today announced an initiative to provide financial support to the daily wage earners of the film industry, who are affected due to the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

According to a press release by YRF, the initiative called 'Yash Chopra Saathi,' the Yash Chopra Foundation will provide Rs 5,000 to the women and senior citizens working in the film industry as well as distribute ration kits to workers for a family of four for an entire month through their NGO partners Youth Feed India. YRF said that those in need can immediately apply to avail the support through an online application process, at https://yashchoprafoundation.org.

Akshaye Widhani, senior vice president, YRF said that the foundation was committed to providing support to the Hindi film industry and its workers, who have been an integral part of their 50-year journey.

"The pandemic has pushed the backbone of our industry, the daily workers, to a breaking point and YRF wants to support as many workers and their families who are in need due to the loss of livelihood. Yash Chopra Saathi Initiative is aiming to provide support to the pandemic hit workers of our industry who we urgently need to focus on," Widhani said in the statement.

While the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) has about 2.5 lakh registered workers, there are several lakh technicians and other professionals associated with the film industry who have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last week, Yash Raj Films had also requested Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to allow his production house Yash Raj Films (YRF) to purchase 60,000 Covid-19 vaccines and help in vaccinating cine workers.