The decision of the Kerala Film Producers’ Association to ban actor Shane Nigam turned an emotional issue on Friday, with his mother writing to the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) seeking its intervention in the matter.
AMMA general secretary Edavela Babu confirmed the receipt of such a letter and said that the association would indeed intervene on behalf of Mr. Nigam. It is learned that the actor had met Mr. Babu along with his family.
Earlier in the day, he had said that it was the association’s responsibility to act in the interests of its members and agreed to intervene if requested by the actor. It was after that the association received a letter from the Mr. Nigam’s mother.
Ace photographer-director Rajeev Ravi also came out in support of the youngster, regarding him as a very talented artiste.
He drew attention to the actor’s young age and asked for matured decision through consensus by all stakeholders concerned by keeping away their egos. If the actor had erred, he would have regretted it, and the media should not blow the issue out of proportion, he said.
Mr. Ravi, who gave Mr. Nigam his first outing as actor in his directorial debut Annayum Rasoolum , said that banning him and stripping him of work were not the way to deal with the issue. He added that asking the youngster to pay over ₹7 crore in damages for his two shelved films was not feasible.
Mr. Ravi clarified that though he had said that he would rope in the young actor as assistant and would do films with him if he was to be banned, it was not meant to be a provocation.
Director and FEFKA general secretary B. Unnikrishnan said that the organisation would submit a formal letter to the Kerala Film Producers’ Association seeking a review of the decision to shelve two under-production movies – Veyil and Kurbani – with Mr. Nigam in the lead.
“Directors of both movies have approached us, requesting our intervention in the matter and help them complete their projects,” he said.
Mr. Unnikrishnan was, however, scathing on Mr. Nigam for his perceived tantrums in sets and his decision to shave off hair, affecting the continuity of movies he was part of.
The actor was in violation of professional decorum and should have sought matured solutions if he was not comfortable with the environment in a film set.
