Kerala Chalachitra Academy chief Ranjith quits over harassment allegations
Malayalam director Ranjith has stepped down as the chairman of the Kerala Chalachitra Academy, a state-run film body. This development comes in the wake of allegations of sexual harassment made against him by Bengali actor Sreelekha Mitra. The incident reportedly took place during the pre-production phase of a 2009 movie. The Communist Party of India (CPI), a key constituent of the Left Democratic Front (LDF), had demanded an inquiry into Mitra's accusations.
Mitra's account of the incident
Mitra, in an interview with PTI, recounted, "I went to his residence to discuss an upcoming film project and I did not like his behavior. He made certain advances subtly and I felt uncomfortable while we were discussing the script." Despite her objections, Ranjith allegedly persisted. "I don't know if he has treated other female actors in the film industry in the same way. It is upto them to open up or not if they had faced similar situation."
Mitra urges other victims to speak out
Mitra added, "The incident in Kerala was years back...but it is heartening that women are speaking out with greater vigour and conviction against any form of misconduct now, taking out rallies." "I am looking forward to the day when number of any instance of gender abuse, misconduct will go down and women will not have such harrowing tales any more."
Ranjith's response: 'Damaged my reputation'
Ranjith has reportedly denied Mitra's allegations. He said, "This has damaged my reputation. It's not easy, but I have to prove these allegations wrong." "What she said is a lie or a part of it is a lie. She has given conflicting statements about it. I'm not going into the details of it. Anyway, I have decided to move legally against it. I have to know the truth behind this."
Part of a bigger problem in the industry
There were widespread demands for Ranjith's resignation as the film academy chairman following Mitra's allegations. Separately, earlier on Saturday, Malayalam actor Siddique resigned from his role as the general secretary of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) after being accused of sexual assault by actor Revathy Sampath. The controversy has added to the existing turmoil in the Malayalam film industry, which has been shaken by the Justice Hema Committee report exposing rampant casting couch culture and sexual abuse culture.
