When the Justice Hema Committee report was finally released to the public, there were many voices arguing nothing would come of it because many names were redacted and there was nothing “new.” But the strength of such a detailed study, conducted under the aegis of the government, and presented to public scrutiny is the platform it provides for the voiceless. After the report’s contents were out, many survivors came out to tell their stories to the media in the hope that the cycle of oppression doesn’t continue. Now, a Malayalam actress has come forward to narrate certain harrowing stories from her past that involve prominent actors like Mukesh and Jayasurya.
In a social media post, she spoke about a series of incidents from 2013 where she was subjected to abuse by actors Mukesh, Edavela Babu, Jayasurya and Maniyanpilla Raju. While the first three did not respond to Muneer’s claims, Raju said he welcomes a probe into the allegations. “I will file a complaint with the state police team, which was assigned to look into the revelations which came up in the wake of the Hema Committee report,” Muneer told the media.
ALSO READ: Parvathy Thiruvothu on Justice Hema Committee Report: ‘Put through a long wait…, expected quicker action…’
She also alleged that the AMMA (Association of Malayalam Movie Artists), constituted to safeguard the interests of the Malayalam movie artists, failed to do so. She claimed there are sexual favours being asked of actors who want to be part of the organisation. While it can be argued that this is a case of a few bad apples, the names mentioned by the actress are some of the high-ranking members of AMMA.
Minu also claimed that in 2013, she had applied for a membership of the AMMA. “A person who acted in three films is eligible for membership in AMMA. When I called him over the phone regarding filling the application form, he invited me to his flat. While I was filling the application form at his flat, he kissed on my neck from behind. I ran out of the flat. I did not get the membership either,’’ she claimed.
Earlier, many members of Malayalam cinema, including the Women in Cinema Collective, expressed their displeasure over the functioning of the organisation, and it has been reflected in the Hema Committee report too. In fact, Parvathy Thiruvothu resigned from AMMA after Edavela Babu, one of the top functionaries of AMMA, made disparaging remarks about a female colleague.
ALSO READ: Parvathy Thiruvothu resigns from AMMA citing Edavela Babu’s ‘utterly disgusting’ remark
The ripples to the Hema Committee report aren’t just limited to the Malayalam cinema fraternity. Siddique, popular actor and former General Secretary of AMMA, and director Ranjith, who was heading the Kerala Chalachitra Academy, resigned from their posts following the allegations of abuse against them. Even amidst all this the conspicuous silence of the biggest male stars of the industry, including Mohanlal and Mammootty, is becoming a voice of concern for everyone following the aftermath of the Justice Hema Committee Report.
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