No EU Green Pass for Covishield: B’wood unfazed, aam janta worried

Anjuri Nayar Singh

News reports of Covishield vaccine getting excluded from the new EU Covid ‘Green Pass’ eligibility list has received mixed reactions in the country, with Europebound denizens wondering when would they be able to travel next! Nine European countries have accepted Covishield and India has asked other EU member states to individually consider. Some big ticket films, which are scheduled to be shot in European cities, might also be at the receiving end of this debate, alongside those who need to travel for business and education. According to sources, parts of Salman Khan-Katrina Kaif starrer Tiger 3 as well as Shah Rukh Khan’s Pathan are scheduled to be shot in certain cities of Europe. Film trade analysts, however, are of the opinion that these films won’t lose out. “This vaccination issue will be resolved with the higher authorities coming together. Then, film teams will travel, following all protocols and formats like maintaining a bio bubble,” says trade analyst Atul Mohan. Trade analyst Komal Nahta agrees with him: “This is just a matter of time; it’s at most a procedural problem and is not reala big hitch.”

Commoners who were planning to travel are feeling stuck now. “Since the European cities are returning to normalcy, we hoped to get our businesses back on track,” says Neeharika Leekha, a Delhi-based entrepreneur, adding, “Face to face meetings are needed... We hope that we are allowed to move freely in different European cities.”