President of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes (AMMA) Mohanlal has said that actor Dileep will remain outside the organisation until he proves his innocence in a case pertaining to the alleged kidnapping and sexual assault on a woman actor here in February last year.
He said Dileep would be reinstated once he proved his innocence in the case. “He had already given a letter stating that he would not like to be part of the organisation. A review on reinstating him will be taken after the court delivers its verdict,” Mr. Mohanlal said at a ‘Meet-the-Press’ programme at the Ernakulam Press Club on Monday.
Elaborating on the ‘unanimous decision’ to reinstate Dileep at a general body meet here on June 24, Mr. Mohanlal said AMMA faced a possible split after the available executive committee members met at actor Mamootty’s residence to discuss the action to be taken following Dileep’s arrest.
“However, we later found that the decision to expel Dileep without serving notice and seeking his reply was against our rules. Hence it was frozen,” he said.
Mr. Mohanlal asked why the members of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) failed to present their views within the organisation rather than airing them outside.
Denies WCC charges
Denying the WCC’s observation that the issue related to Dileep was not included on the agenda, Mr. Mohanlal said the organisation had received the resignation letters of the woman actor (who was allegedly harassed) and Remya Nambeesan only. Actor Reema Kallingal and actor-filmmaker Geethu Mohandas had also resigned.
Explaining that his organisation was ready to hold talks with the WCC, Mr. Mohanlal rejected reports that actor Parvathy was denied a chance to contest to the executive committee.
On the survivor’s statement that the association had not acted on her complaint that Dileep had scuttled her acting opportunities, Mr. Mohanlal claimed that they had not yet received any written complaint from her.
“We had always stood by her. We do not know what happened. The matter is before the court,” he said.
On allegations that a skit staged at the recent AMMA ‘Mazhavillu’ show portrayed WCC members in bad light, Mr. Mohanlal said the script, which was laced with black humour, was done by the women members of the organisation.
He said the association stood with actor Nisha Sarang who had raised allegations of inappropriate behaviour against the director of a serial in which she played the lead role.
