K'wood stars line up for public causes

The music composer turned actor GV Prakash, who has been actively involved in social causes and has been heard raising his voice on various issues including Jallikattu and farmers’ matters, is now joining hands with the ‘Ban Sterlite’ and ‘Save Thoothukudi’ campaign with the ongoing Sterlite protests.

Irrespective of age, thousands of people gathered near the Chidambaram Nagar bus stand in Thoothukudi district and were shouting slogans, cheering speakers on the stage against the Sterlite copper plant, which is planning to expand its capacity. The protesters are saying the plant itself should be closed.

GV had posted a series of pictures and tweets raising questions. He had said, “Why do they refuse to understand that nothing can be done after the damage has been done? Who will take the responsibility if something terrible happens?”
“People are the government and government is for the people,” he says. It appears like how he went and sat down in Marina and Alanganallur to join the Jallikattu protests, the Naachiyaar actor might join the protest at Thoothukudi soon.

Earlier Kamal Haasan has supported the cause of ‘Ban Sterlite’ and said he was ready to join the protest happening at Thoothukudi if people call him as he is committed to the cause.  It appears now that the whole of Kollywood is preparing to get vocal on public causes. With two of its major stars already in politics —Kamal is officially in and Rajini will be naming his party soon — it’s clear that filmdom is here to make one with public causes.

Following the Hollywood example of a whole tribe of actors coming out against the US President Donald Trump and also standing in solidarity with the #MeToo moment against sexual harassment and condemning the likes of Harvey Weinstein, Kollywood too seems to have had its moment of epiphany in the Jallikattu protests of 2017.

Thoothukudi came to a standstill on Saturday as about 15,000 people joined in the Sterlite protest calling for the plant to shut alleging it is polluting the air, water and soil.  The background is that a few years ago hundreds of people complained of breathing difficulties and the plant was asked to shut before an NGT order allowed it to resume.

“Every new day new power plant is coming up in Tuticorin. No one is talking about that, nobody is bothered about the messed up social conditions and civic failures the town is going through. Why single out Sterlite?” says Richard Jonathan, an industrialist, on his Facebook page.

There is also news that a foreign hand is upping the ante in the Sterlite protests. However, with Kollywood stars now likely to line up in the cause of fighting pollution, it does appear another movement is likely to take off in a big way in Tamil Nadu, a state somewhat notorious for opposing many things.