Actor Parvathy Thiruvothu on Monday resigned from the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes (AMMA), in protest against the comments made by its general secretary Edavela Babu in a media interview. When asked whether actor Bhavana would be included in a movie that the AMMA was planning to make, Mr. Babu had said, “She is not in AMMA anymore. We cannot bring back the dead.”
Also read: Supreme Court refuses to stay trial against actor Dileep
“His utterly disgusting and mortifying remark comparing a woman member who had been badly let down by this organisation and consequently left it, to a dead person is beyond correction. Mr. Babu may believe he just used a metaphor, but it shows his nauseating attitude and I pity him. I am sure that when the media starts discussing this remark, many of his peers will support him. I am certain about this because of the way they have always dealt with issues pertaining to women,” said Parvathy in a facebook post announcing her resignation.
Also Read: Get 'First Day First Show', our weekly newsletter from the world of cinema, in your inbox . You can subscribe for free here
Stayed back in 2018
In July 2018, four members of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), including an actor who was allegedly abducted and sexually assaulted, had resigned from AMMA, in protest against the organisation’s decision to reinstate actor Dileep , who was ousted from the organisation after he was named an accused in the abduction and sexual assault case. Parvathy was one of the WCC members who remained in AMMA to continue the fight from within.
“In 2018, when my friends resigned from A.M.M.A, I stayed back thinking at least a few should continue to work within a broken system and help repair it. But after watching [the] A.M.M.A general secretary speak, I have abandoned all hope that anything will ever change within this association,” she said in the facebook post.
She demanded that Mr. Babu resign from the post and expressed hope that “other conscientious members will also demand for the same.”
“I will be keenly watching to see who will come forward. I urge every member to see that it is a hazy bubble of 'welfare' that is wrapped around a core of corrupt morals,” she said.
