In a significant development within the Cine and TV Artistes Association (CINTAA), eight elected members of its Executive Committee have resigned from their respective offices and from the association's Executive Committee with immediate effect, citing a loss of confidence in the present manner of functioning and calling for fresh elections.
The eight elected members named by CINTAA General Secretary Upasana Singh are Hemant Pandey, Mukesh Rishi, Sahila Chadha, Hetal Parmar, Puneet Issar, Vindu Dara Singh, Vikas Verma and Deepak Parashar.
In their joint resignation letter, the members said their decision followed what they described as repeated departures from the principles of collective decision-making, consultation and constitutional governance. They alleged that the functioning of the association had increasingly become concentrated around CINTAA President Poonam Dhillon and Senior Vice President Padmini Kolhapure, along with a section of other Executive Committee members.
"The President, Poonam Dhillon, has repeatedly taken unilateral decisions, issued official communications through her ID to government officials and unilaterally decided communications to industry bodies. through the official CINTAA ID, and represented the Association in public and with other government, quasi-judicial and industry bodies without the knowledge, consultation, and/ or approval of the Executive Committee, thereby nullifying the principle of collective responsibility," a part of the letter read.
The resigning members alleged that several decisions were being taken without adequate consultation with, or approval from, the Executive Committee.
The letter further alleges that Dhillon and Kolhapure visited government offices accompanied by privately engaged lawyers, who were allegedly introduced as CINTAA lawyers without the authority or sanction of the Executive Committee.
These claims are part of the resigning members' stated reasons for losing confidence in the current functioning of the association.
CINTAA General Secretary Upasana Singh, speaking to ANI, confirmed that 11 members had resigned, of whom eight were elected Executive Committee members.
Singh said the eight elected members had submitted their resignations along with complaints outlining their reasons for stepping down.
"Out of our 11 members, eight elected members have resigned and submitted their resignations to me. They have also submitted their complaints, stating that Padmini Kolhapure and Poonam Dhillon are misusing their positions," Singh said.
Singh also raised concerns about the use of personal email accounts for official correspondence.
She explained that official communication from an association should ordinarily go through its official email system so that there is transparency and a record accessible to the organisation.
"When a mail has to be sent to any organisation, we cannot send it through our personal mail ID if we want to send it officially. This is the same everywhere. Here, Poonam ji sends her personal mail ID to the organisations and asks them to send it to her. She gains no benefit from it but there is no transparency," the actor added.
Meanwhile, responding to the matter, Advocate Suvigya Vidyarthi, on behalf of CINTAA, clarified that the association has not been dissolved.
In a statement, Vidyarthi said, "The version which has been circulating that the EC of CINTAA is dissolved is totally wrong, misconceived and lacks any judicial sanctity. As per the Constitution of CINTAA, the EC shall dissolve only when more than 50% of the elected members of the EC resign, which is not the case at hand. Also, as per the Constitution, new members have been inducted in their place who were next in line by the voting count."
Vibha Maru is an Assistant Editor with Hindustan Times Entertainment, based in Delhi. With a decade of experience across digital and print media, she covers Bollywood, Hollywood and web shows. A self-confessed cinephile who breathes Hindi cinema, Vibha can often be found sacrificing sleep after binge-watching films and web series. Though she holds a Commerce degree, she discovered her true calling in journalism after enrolling at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC). She began her career covering Delhi's cultural scene, food, nightlife, concerts, and city life at The Times of India, before moving into full-time entertainment journalism with India Today. At India Today, Vibha interviewed some of the biggest names in Bollywood and television while carving a niche for herself through film reviews, opinion pieces, nostalgic features, celebrity interviews, and trend-driven stories. She later brought her storytelling and editorial expertise to The Indian Express, where she continued to deepen her understanding of cinema through long-form entertainment explainers, retrospectives and feature writing. Now, as Assistant Editor at Hindustan Times Entertainment, Vibha continues to chronicle the world of movies and pop culture. Her work spans breaking entertainment news, exclusive interviews, celebrity features, and stories that capture the conversations shaping Indian cinema.Read More
