Panel to be set up to check sexual harassment in Tamil film industry
A panel akin to the Kerala’s Hema committee will be formed in the next 10 days by the Nadigar Sangam to address complaints of sexual harassment in the Tamil film industry
A panel akin to the Kerala’s Hema committee will be formed in the next 10 days by the Nadigar Sangam (or the South Indian Artistes Association) to address complaints of sexual harassment in the Tamil film industry, association’s general secretary and Tamil actor Vishal said on Thursday.
“Anybody (working in the industry) can file their complaints. We will form a 10-member committee in the next 10 days…We are in the process of finalising the members of the committee. We will formally announce the committee soon. The Nadigar Sangam is not just for men but for the safety of women too. Women play an important role in the film industry,” Vishal told reporters.
The Hema committee report was released on August 19 revealing cases of sexual harassment and human rights violations within the Malayalam film industry. The three-member committee was constituted by the Kerala government after the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) met with chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan following the alleged rape case of a popular Malayalam actor in 2017.
Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu minister for information and publicity P Saminathan was called out for his statement to reporters on Thursday after he claimed that there were no complaints of sexual harassment in the Tamil film industry.
Playback singer Chinmayi Sripraada has been at the forefront fighting for justice over this issue, said that the minister “brazenly lies through his teeth” in a post on X. “As I said-No use,” Sripraada said.
Vishal also urged women entering the industry not to trust fake companies, whose agenda is only to lure women by setting up an office and cameras under the guise of photoshoots. “Women should be very careful,” he added.
In a post of X, writer Meena Kandasamy said: “Will anything remotely similar happen in Tamil cinema? I have no hopes. And my pessimism comes not just from the reluctance in addressing systematic misogyny. Politicians in Kerala have at least a semblance of commitment to self-image. Here, only photo-ops with Diamond-Pearl.”
Diamond-pearl is the English translation of the name of Tamil cinema’s celebrated lyricist Vairamuthu who was accused of sexual harassment by multiple women, including singer Chinmayi Sripada. Vairamuthu has denied the charges and continues to wield influence in the Tamil film industry and the ruling DMK government.