Spotlight on women’s independence

Minister releases short film, Pennoruthi

Minister for Health and Social Justice K.K. Shylaja signs on the ‘Proud to be a Woman’ board set up during the launch of the short film Pennoruthi in Kozhikode on Sunday. Actor Manju Warrier is seen.

The often accepted view that man is an independent individual with his own identity while a woman needs to be protected is questioned in Pennoruthi , a short film that was released in Kozhikode by Minister for Health and Social Justice K.K. Shylaja on Sunday.

Produced by the Kozhikode District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) and the Kerala State Women’s Development Corporation (KSWDC) with the help of Knowledge Tree Foundation, Pennoruthi asserts that a woman is an independent individual who needs to be let alone.

‘Lakshmana rekha’

“Girls have to be treated as citizens with the rights, duties and freedom that comes with it,” said Ms. Shylaja. “Though there have been a lot of changes in the condition of women over the years, the lakshmana rekha still remains. It has to be broken,” she added.

Pointing out that changes do not happen overnight, the Minister called for a relentless struggle to achieve the goal.

Actor Manju Warrier said the terms women empowerment and feminism had been misunderstood and misconstrued to seem as if women were against men. “A woman is most happy where she is respected and feels safe,” she said.

Chief Judicial Magistrate of Kannur and Project Head of Pennoruthi R.L. Baiju said a sense of submissiveness that had been injected into women since childhood made them weak.

Pennoruthi is the second movie produced by the DLSA after Katha Katha Kaaranam, which dealt with the attitude of society towards people with mental disorders.

The film was scripted and directed by Sudhi Krishnan with Ansiba Hassan and Rajesh Hebbar in the lead roles. Deviprasad Sekhar has penned the lyrics for the songs composed by Sajan K. Ram. KSWDC chairperson K.S. Saleekha was the creative head while Knowledge Tree Foundation general secretary K.U. Babu and KSWDC managing director Bindu V.C. were the project designers.