The Kerala government on Sunday formed a seven-member panel of high-ranking police officers to investigate allegations of sexual abuse against several prominent members of the Malayalam film industry, reported The Indian Express.
Earlier in the day, senior Malayalam actor Siddique resigned as the general secretary of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes after an actor accused him of raping her when she was younger.
Additionally, Malayalam director Ranjith resigned as the chairman of the state-run Kerala Chalachitra Academy, days after actor Sreelekha Mitra accused him of sexually harassing her in 2009.
This came against the backdrop of the Justice Hema committee report on sexual harassment and gender inequality in the Malayalam film industry being made public.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan convened a high-level meeting of police officers on Sunday after the allegations came to light, according to The Indian Express. A team led by Inspector-General Sparjan Kumar was formed to look into the complaints.
Allegations against Siddique and Ranjith
On Saturday, an actor from the Malayalam film industry accused Siddique of sexually assaulting her after calling her to Thiruvananthapuram for the audition of a “non-existent movie”, reported The Hindu.
“Siddique got in touch with me through a social media platform and offered me a role in a Tamil movie in which his son would also be acting,” the actor was quoted as saying by the newspaper. “I did not doubt his intentions because he always used to call me daughter. After about a year, I came to Thiruvananthapuram to take forward the offer. It was a trap. Such a movie did not exist. He sexually assaulted me for an hour in a hotel room.”
She alleged that Siddique hit and kicked her when she resisted. The actor also claimed that Siddique has perpetrated similar things on some of her friends too.
On Sunday, Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes vice president Jayan Cherthala told media persons that Siddique could not hold the position as the association’s general secretary “when such allegations have come up against him”, reported The Indian Express.
On the other hand, Mitra alleged that Ranjith sexually harassed her when the film Paleri Manikyam: Oru Pathirakolapathakathinte Katha was under production.
Responding to the allegations, the director claimed that it was part of a concerted attack on him.
“The damage the allegation has inflicted upon me as an individual can’t be repaired immediately,” he said, according to The Indian Express. “Yet, I would have to prove that the allegation was wrong. I will convince the public that it was a lie. She has made contradictory statements. Whatever it be, I have decided to go ahead with legal action.”
Justice Hema committee report
Made public on August 19, the report identified a list of 17 problems faced by women in the Malayalam film industry, including demands for sex, sexual harassment and abuse, and assault in their vehicles and at places of accommodation.
The report found that women risk facing “torture” if they express resentment or unwillingness to fulfil sexual demands.
“Violation of human rights of women in cinema by not providing basic facilities like toilets and changing rooms,” the report said.
The committee also said that the unauthorised and illegal practice of “banning” women from the industry is used to prevent them from speaking out against the biases they face at work.
Contracts between employers and employees are made verbally to suit individual requirements, the panel found. The committee also said there were instances in which employers had failed to pay their employees money that had been agreed upon.
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