After much delay, the much-awaited Justice K Hema Committee report, which studied issues faced by women in the Malayalam film industry, has been released.
The report revealed that women face extreme discrimination in Malayalam movie industry. The committee recommended that there should not be any gender discrimination in payment.
The report recommended that drugs and alcohol should be banned from movie locations. It directed producers to make sure that women working in films have safe places to stay and that their travel too is arranged. Besides, producers should ensure that those who have criminal backgrounds are not appointed as drivers.
The commission reportedly found that women in the industry are forced to make certain compromises, suggesting the existence of a casting couch
It also suggested that those working in the film industry should not impose any ban on others in the industry.
The report said: “As study progressed into the issues faced by women in the industry, it started revealing that the glamour of industry is just exterior glitter.”
The commission, headed by retired justice K. Hema, had handed over the 233-page report to the state government on December 31, 2019. The committee was formed to study in detail the problems faced by women in Mollywood, including sexual harassment and gender inequality, in the wake of the assault of an actor allegedly orchestrated by actor Dileep.
The report was released after a division bench of the Kerala High Court dismissed a plea by actor Ranjini, who was among those who gave the statements to the committee, seeking a review of the report before it was out in public.
There were repeated delays in releasing the Hema committee report as it contained sensitive information. The government had, on Thursday, said Hema committee report release would happen after 63 pages, containing sensitive information that would affect the privacy of the people mentioned in it, would be removed. The original report has 295 pages.
Earlier, Kerala Culture Minister Saji Cherian had said that the government is not against the release of the findings in the report.
The state government had spent over Rs 1 crore on the committee’s functioning alone.