Chief Minister Pinaray Vijayan said here on Tuesday that the State government would intervene decisively if any of those who deposed before the K. Hema Committee preferred to come forward with a complaint against their purported persecutors.
Mr. Vijayan’s avowal to punish sexual predators in the Malayalam film industry, irrespective of their public stature, came amidst mounting criticism that the government had buried the incriminating report that documented in harrowing detail scores of instances of sexual bullying, casting couch encounters, boycotts, gender pay gap and dismal workplace conditions experienced generally by women in the sprawling Malayalam entertainment industry.
At a press conference, Mr. Vijayan said the committee had written to the government stressing the confidentiality of the depositions given by complainants and witnesses.
The Hema committee sought no criminal prosecution on its findings. The committee seemed acutely aware of the personal and professional consequences the complainants would face if their statements became public.
Moreover, the committee commenced its work in 2017 based on the fundamental premise that it would not publish or communicate to the government the complainants’ statements or the evidence, including digital records, the aggrieved parties tendered in good faith to the panel.
Mr. Vijayan said the panel limited its remit to submitting an advisory report to the government. Its report paved the way for much-needed reforms in the entertainment industry, including a regulatory mechanism to ensure workplace safety and fair compensation for women artists and technicians.
Mr. Vijayan said that movies can have villains. However, the film industry should not have malefactors who prey on artistes or deny their chances by imposing undeclared boycotts. Films could run according to a script. However, the industry should not run according to any powerful lobby’s unchallenged writ.
He said ideological differences enrich cinema. Monopolistic groups retard the industry by denying young talents a level-playing field to showcase their skills and express their creativity. A fair and just working place independent of caucuses and lobbies is conducive to good cinema.
“The doyens of the industry should desist from attempting to sideline people who they do not like or promote those less talented,” Mr. Vijayan said.
Mr. Vijayan reiterated that the government was with the complainants and not the predators in the cinema industry. It had prosecuted several actors and producers who had preyed on artistes, promising them roles in their films.
Mr. Vijayan said society’s ills had also crept into the film industry. The government did not think the 94-year-old industry was a hive of felons. Malayalam cinema was a cradle of creativity and social discourse.
Mr. Vijayan said the Malayalam film industry has a hard-earned place in the global cinema landscape. However, some course corrections and rectifications were necessary.
