Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram, Shashi Tharoor, said that he is proud of the fact that Kerala was the first state to address the issues faced by the women in the film industry.
“At least Kerala stood up and said 'this is not right',” Tharoor told NDTV.
He, however, was quick to criticise the state government for not releasing the Hema Committee report earlier. The three-member panel was set up by the Kerala government in 2017 to study the issues faced by the women in the Malayalam film industry. The report was submitted in 2019, but was made public only earlier this month. Several allegations of sexual exploitation, assault and abuse against top actors and directors, among others, have rocked Mollywood since the release of the report.
“The exposure of the issue and the beginnings of action being taken are a good sign that Kerala is taking it seriously,” he said.
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The Congress MP said that such crimes against women cause the society to degrade. "I think there are many things coming out of the closet of our society; the assault and violence against women, which is perhaps the most worrying. This goes back forever but is now talked about since the Nirbhaya tragedy of 2012 and now, the R.G. Kar Hospital rape and murder of 2024.
"This is a span of a dozen years in which nothing seems to have changed," Tharoor said.
He also said that there is something wrong with Indian men if they are not able to address these issues. Tharoor added that post Nirbhaya case, he thought about whether it was possible to add gender sensitivity training in schools for boys from a young age. “We need systemic change.”
When asked about the resignation of the executive committee of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA), Tharoor said, “They did sit and preside over a system that allowed this to happen to so many young women. There should be some accountability.”
Tharoor also said that there should be a “tribunal with outside people” so that complaints can be raised by women who face issues from the patriarchal power structure, within, for example, a film set.
