The Malayam film industry is now having its own version of #MeToo moment. The recent release of the Justice Hema Committee report has triggered a major upheaval as it exposed the sordid underbelly of the entertainment industry with many women artistes recounting their ordeal of undergoing sexual harassment. It is ironic that Mollywood, known for experimenting with bold themes, breaking the glass ceiling and consistently producing some of the finest and high-quality films, should be embroiled in such unseemly controversies. The report of the judicial panel, formed to examine the working conditions of women in the movie industry, was released last week by the Pinarayi Vijayan government on the direction of the Kerala High Court.
The report, highlighting shocking instances of abuse that women have to face on a daily basis, comes as a wakeup call for the entertainment sector across the country. The ordeal that the women artistes face includes demands of sexual favours in exchange for work, lack of basic infrastructure like toilets and changing rooms, pay disparity, coercion to perform nude scenes, withholding of remuneration and online harassment among other transgressions. The revelations also provide evidence of the ‘casting couch’ and shed light on the dis-proportionate, cartel-like power enjoyed by the fraternity of male directors, actors and producers.