Leading Malayalam actor Prithviraj Sukumaran on Monday said there have been lapses on the part of the influential Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) in addressing complaints of female actors and demanded a serious investigation into the issues raised in the Justice Hema committee report released last week.
The report, released four and a half years after it was submitted to the government, looked at the problems faced by women working in the Malayalam film industry. It revealed that sexual misconduct is rampant in the industry, and since its release, several female actors have made allegations of sexual abuse and assault against several leading actors.
Addressing a press conference in Kochi, Prithviraj said the allegations should be investigated. “If the allegations are proved, strict action should be taken against the culprits. The Hema Committee report should be considered seriously,” he said.
Hema Committee Report He said that there is a powerful group that controls the Malayalam film industry, and Prithviraj said that the existence of such a powerful group cannot be denied.
Prithviraj said it was up to the authorities to decide whether to make public the names of those accused of misconduct in the report. “I don't think there is anything that prevents disclosure of the names of the alleged accused. Legally, only the names of the victims need to be protected,” he said.
On the issues raised in the HEMA panel report, he said: “There should have been a strict intervention from AMMA. No one can deny the existence of a powerful group in the industry. If there are people who are influenced by powerful groups, we should be ready to listen to them. Such powerful groups should be abolished. I can make my work environment safe, but our responsibility does not end there,” he said.
He said there should be no boycotts or bans in the industry and women should be brought into leadership positions. “If someone is banned in an organised way, that should be looked into,” he added.
He said, “If corrective measures are taken, the Malayalam film industry will become the first industry in the history of Indian cinema to take such a step.”
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