The Kerala Film Producers’ Association on Thursday triggered a huge controversy that is likely to rock the Malayalam film industry, when it accused some of the new-generation actors of causing trouble in film sets under the influence of narcotic drugs.
Addressing a press conference, the association president Rejaputhra Renjith went to the extent of seeking police checks in caravans in which many actors spend long hours.
The association office bearers, however, were quick to clarify that the accusation was not a sweeping one and that it was applicable only to ‘some’ new generation actors.
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Siyad Koker, producer and another office bearer of the association, said that the use of new generation drugs like LSD should be suspected among these actors. He wondered why enforcement agencies were charging common people alone in drug cases, while turning a blind eye to celebrities. He said even the media chose to remain silent about the actors whom they knew were into drug abuse.
The association’s damning statement came after a meeting at which it decided to ban actor Shane Nigam after he stirred up a controversy by shaving off his hair and beard thus disrupting the shooting of the under production movie
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The association said two under-production films — Veyil and Kurbani — featuring Mr. Nigam stood shelved and demanded the actor to compensate the producers over ₹7 crore that had gone into the making of these films so far.
Mr. Renjith said the actor behaved in a manner raising doubts whether he was in his senses. The decision had been conveyed to Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (A.M.M.A). He said that even the secretary of A.M.M.A, Edavela Babu, who had actively involved in bringing about a truce between Mr. Nigam and the producer of the movie Veyil , had given up on account of the antics of the actor.
The association hinted that the ban against the actor could be extended to other film industries as well, as all the associations were affiliated.