- Monday, November 25, 2024
Ranjith resigned as the chairman of Kerala Chalachitra Academy following allegations of misbehaviour levelled against him by a Bengali actor
By: Shajil Kumar
AFTER the justice Hema Committee report, detailing the problems faced by women in the Malayalam film industry, became public last week some big names in the industry are now facing sexual harassment allegations.
In the latest development, acclaimed Malayalam filmmaker Ranjith on Sunday resigned as the chairman of Kerala Chalachitra Academy following allegations of misbehaviour levelled against him by a Bengali actor.
In an audio clip sent to a television channel, Ranjith said he doesn’t want to continue in the position as it would adversely impact the reputation of the Left government in the state.
He also said he would fight the accusations against him legally.
“I have been targeted by a certain section of people since the day I took charge as the Chairman of the Academy. I need to prove before the society that the allegations are untrue. I have decided to move legally and bring out the truth,” he was heard saying in the audio clip.
“Many people including the media are attacking me without understanding the truth. In this context, I have decided to step down from the post,” Ranjith said.
The Bengali actress recently alleged that the award-winning filmmaker had behaved in an inappropriate manner when she came up for the shooting of a film which he had helmed.
The filmmaker has rejected the actor’s charge and said he was the “real victim” in the case.
After Ranjith announced his resignation, state Cultural Affairs Minister Saji Cheriyan told reporters here that the government would accept the filmmaker’s resignation as soon as he sent it.
Reiterating that the Left government has always stood by the victims in issues relating to sexual assaults and abuses, the minister also rejected allegations that he had tried to shield the accused director.
“I have always taken a stern stand in favour of women in all issues. The Left government’s stand is also crystal clear in the matter. We are always with victims in such cases. Stringent action will be taken against the wrongdoers.”
The minister also accused the media of ‘misinterpreting’ his words and claimed that he had never supported Ranjith.
Cheriyan had courted controversy on Saturday saying Ranjith was one of the most acclaimed filmmakers of the country and no case could be registered based on just allegations and such cases won’t stand.
As his reaction triggered a row, the minister later came out with a Facebook post clarifying that the government would not protect anyone who had committed a wrong.
Ranjith was forced to announce his resignation on Sunday morning following intense protests against him and the state government in view of the shocking charges.
Opposition Congress and BJP already made it clear Ranjith had no moral right to continue in the position.
Meanwhile, BJP activists took out a protest march to Ranjith’s residence in Kozhikode this morning demanding his resignation.
Youth Congress activists had protested outside a resort in Meppadi in Wayanad district where Ranjith was staying on Saturday.
YC state vice-president Abin Varkey lodged a formal complaint with the police chief seeking action against him on Saturday.
Actor Siddique quits AMMA post
Noted actor Siddique on Sunday resigned as the general secretary of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (A.M.M.A.) following sexual assault allegations raised by a woman actor on August 24.
Speaking to media, the senior actor said he had sent his resignation letter to the President of the organisation, Mohanlal.
“Yes. I have tendered my official resignation to the president of the organisation, Mohanlal. Since there were allegations against me, I have decided not to continue in the post and resigned,” Siddique said.
A female actor had on Saturday alleged that Siddique had sexually abused her after inviting her for a movie discussion.
Meanwhile, various members of A.M.M.A. welcomed the decision of the senior actor to step down from the top post of the outfit in the wake of the allegations.
Meanwhile, Jayan Cherthala, the vice president of the A.M.M.A., said it was not appropriate for Siddique to continue in the position even after such serious allegations cropped up against him.
Well-known actor Anoop Chandran said he sent an email to A.M.M.A. president Mohanlal in the morning detailing the necessity of seeking Siddique’s resignation from the position.
“The continuation of a person, facing serious allegations, in the post is actually an insult to the entire organisation. So I said in the email that if Siddique was not ready to step down on his own, the executive committee should be prepared to oust him,” Chandran told media.
Actress Mala Parvathy said Siddique’s decision to resign was “morally and ethically correct”.
“The actor’s resignation is inevitable…it is an appropriate decision. If that victim woman showed the courage to come in front of the society and detailed the trauma she underwent publically, we should understand the intensity of pain and humiliation she had suffered,” Parvathy said.
Government faces heat
These allegations came in the wake of the churn in the Malayalam film industry following the release of the Justice Hema Committee report, which pointed towards numerous incidents of sexual abuse in the field.
The report has revealed instances of harassment and exploitation of women in the Malayalam cinema industry, prompting calls for action against the guilty.
The Pinarayi Vijayan government is facing opposition heat for its alleged inaction over the Hema Committee report. Though the report was submitted to the government in December 2019, it was made public after nearly five years of delay.
The 290-page report – parts of which have been redacted to hide identities of survivors and those accused of wrongdoing – says the industry is dominated by “a mafia of powerful men” and that “sexual harassment of women is rampant”.
Headed by a former judge of the Kerala High Court and set up by the state government in 2017, the Hema committee details the abysmal working conditions on sets – including a lack of toilets and changing rooms for junior artists, no food and water for them, poor pay and no accommodation or transport facilities.
The three-member committee was set up in the aftermath of the horrific sexual assault on a leading actress in the Malayalam film industry. She was assaulted by a group of men while travelling from Thrissur to Kochi in February 2017.
Her assault made headlines, especially after Dileep, one of the Malayalam-language film industry’s biggest actors, was named as an accused and charged with criminal conspiracy. (PTI)
