Reacting to the Hema Committee report, which has raised alarm bells nationwide, producer-director-screenwriter TG Vinayakumar has said that the “power group” in the Malayalam film industry now stands unmasked.
“It is the same ‘power group’ that tried to erase my presence from the Kerala film industry that now stands exposed through the Hema Committee report,” said the industry veteran, popularly known as Vinayan.
The Hema Committee report, Vinayan noted, had studied thoroughly the challenges faced by women artists and technicians in the film industry, and urged this “power group” to look at themselves in the mirror.
“Don’t you see your distorted image? MACTA [an association of technicians] gave junior artists the courage to speak out against the abuses they faced from senior artists and provided a supportive environment for women artists,” he said in an exclusive interview with The NewsPorter.
“However, you dissolved that organisation and created AMMA [the current association of actors in the Malayalam film industry], which now operates according to your whims and fancies,” he rued.
Continuing his conversation with The NewsPorter, Vinayan alleged that in 2008, while he was serving as the general secretary, a conspiracy was orchestrated to dissolve MACTA. “Subsequently, I was banned from the industry for 12 years, during which I endured significant suffering.”
‘Powerful lobby’
The Hema Committee report also supports Vinayan’s claims. On page 105, it describes a powerful lobby within the film industry, likened to a “mafia”. The report states, “This lobby can act according to its whims and fancies, even going so far as to impose bans on prominent directors, producers, actors, or anyone else, despite such bans being illegal and unauthorized. No one dares to speak out against anyone in this power group, as such individuals risk being expelled from the industry by this influential lobby.”
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On page 125, the report further says, “Evidence shows that approximately 10 to 15 individuals at the forefront of the Malayalam film industry form a ‘Power Group’ that controls the industry. According to the evidence presented to the committee, both oral and documentary, certain male actors—some of whom are also producers, distributors, exhibitors, or directors—have amassed significant fame and wealth, and they now exert full control over the Malayalam film industry.”
Vinayan believes the ban was a form of revenge against the association because he and his supporters questioned influential figures. Additionally, after the late great actor PKS Thilakan spoke in his defence, he was expelled from their organisation.
Popular method actor
Thilakan, who acted in more than 200 films across South India, was renowned for his method acting, realistic portrayals, and spontaneous performances. In 1991, he was a contender for the National Best Actor Award alongside Amitabh Bachchan. Amitabh won the award for his performance in the film Agneepath.
Meanwhile, after he was banned from the Kerala film industry by the ‘Power Group’, Vinayan took legal recourse against the ban.
“They tried to isolate me by spending crores of rupees. The Supreme Court ruled in my favour. AMMA was slapped with a fine of Rs 4 lakh, and other organizations faced penalties too. Now, the Hema Committee report has further exposed the reality within the industry. This feels like poetic justice,” he added.
Vinayan has directed more than 40 movies, including several big hits, and has introduced at least a dozen newcomers to the industry, who went on to attain stardom.
The report
On Monday (August 19), the Justice Hema Committee Report revealed the presence of casting couch and workplace harassment faced by women in the Malayalam film industry, though it did not name the victims or perpetrators.
The Committee was established in 2017 to examine the issues faced by women artists and technicians in the industry following the notorious “road rape” case involving an actress in Kerala. Although the Committee submitted its report in 2019, it was shelved due to the sensitive nature of its findings. However, on Monday, a truncated and redacted version of the report was released through court intervention and the Right to Information Act.
The report reveals that newcomers to the Malayalam film industry are pressured to make “compromises” and “adjustments”—euphemisms for being coerced into sexual interactions on demand.
The report also notes that a “power group” of 10-15 influential individuals controls the industry. According to the report, anyone who crosses these individuals, whether intentionally or unintentionally, risks being excluded from work opportunities.
The report (in possession of this journalist) reads that “most of the women in cinema, who are known to be very bold, are reluctant and hesitant to divulge their bad experiences in potato cinema, particularly, of sexual harassment.”
“They are scared to disclose it even to their colleagues in cinema, fearing consequences which may have two faces. They are afraid that if they divulge their issues to others, they would be banned from cinema and subjected to other harassments, since such persons are powerful in cinema and all men in cinema will stand together with him. By using fans and fan clubs, they would cause severe online harassment against them in social media. They would also face threat to life, not only to themselves but, even to the close family members also, it is stated by various witnesses. They are thus, silenced in cinema,” the report adds.
The Hema Committee report details 17 types of abuse faced by women in Malayalam cinema. These include sexual demands made for entry into the industry, sexual harassment in the workplace and during transportation, mistreatment at the workplace and in accommodation if women resist sexual advances, a lack of toilets for women, and insufficient dress-changing rooms for junior artists.
In concluding the interview, Vinayan said, “A light boy who sets up the lights and then rests under a tree could be expelled from the industry if he fails to get up upon seeing a powerful figure who controls the industry. This is sufficient for him to be thrown out of the industry.”
The main image on top from Pixabay is an AI-generated one and has been used for illustrative purposes only/This report was first published on this website on Aug 22, 2024, and this is an updated version of the original article
