Mumbai: A lightman died due to an accidental fall while working on the sets of a Bobby Deol starrer in Mumbai on Tuesday morning.

The third such incident in the film industry this year, the accident has brought the focus back on the issue of the security and safety of workers in Bollywood.

Meet the family of Mohammed Jaan - a lightman who worked in the film industry for over 13 years. Thirty-seven-years-old Mohammad broke his skull after a fatal fall while working on the sets of a Bobby Deol starrer. Now, his family is left without a breadwinner.

Mohammed Jaan’s wife Shaboo says, “I don’t have any support and my children have lost their father, I have nothing left.”

In 2007 itself there have been three incidents where lightmen have lost their lives due to accidents, including one on location at Benares during the shoot of Yash Raj Films Laaga Chunari Mein Daag.

Till now there is no official process followed by the industry by which the family of the victim can claim for compensation.

AMPTPP (association of motion Pictures and television programme producers) General Secretary Pahlaj Nihalani says, “In this case when the cameraman places the lightman at a position where it is risky then the producer who has hired the cameraman is responsible for the accident, or death or any such occurrence. He has to take care of expenses."

Very few filmmakers in Bollywood work with an insurance worked out for the behind the camera crew - to cover them in case of accidents.

The reason - insurance is considered a long winding process. The workers federation also believes that insuring the safety for lightmen on film sets will be a long drawn process.

FWICE (Federation of Western India Cine Employees) General Secretary Dinesh Chaturvedi says, “We are trying our level best but things will take time to change.”

While the corporatisation of Bollywood seems to have taken place rapidly over the past couple of years, it looks like the industry's lightmen will still have a lot of darkness to grapple with before a proper system to ensure their safety is implemented.