Four prominent actors face fresh sexual abuse charges, Malayalam film industry in turmoil

Thiruvananthapuram: The fallout from the Justice K Hema Committee report on harassment and abuse in Malayalam cinema industry intensified on Monday as more female actors stepped forward with disturbing accounts of mistreatment at the hands of their male counterparts, further inflaming Kerala's political and cultural landscape.

While actress Minu Muneer, who has appeared in a handful of movies, levelled sexual abuse allegations against actor-turned MLA M Mukesh, Jayasoorya, Maniyanpilla Raju, and Idavela Babu, another well-known actress came forward with allegations of misconduct by a noted filmmaker from years ago.

A 1990s movie actress, who accused the filmmaker of misconduct, has expressed her willingness to provide a statement to the police investigating the case. The filmmaker has denied the charges.

"I am writing to report a series of incidents of physical and verbal abuse I suffered at the hands of 1,Mukesh 2, Maniyan pilla raju, 3 idavela Babu, 4 Jayasoorya, 5, adv Chandrasekaran, 6, production controller noble and vichu, in the Malayalam film industry," Minu Muneer alleged in a Facebook post.

"In 2013, I was subjected to physical and verbal abuse by these individuals while working on a project. I tried to cooperate and continue working, but the abuse became unbearable," the actress, who signed as Minu Kurian in her Facebook post, further charged.

With the exception of Maniyanpilla Raju, none of the actors accused by Minu Muneer have responded to her allegations.

On the same day, a junior artist accused actor Baburaj, known for his villainous movie roles, of sexual assault.

Rejecting the allegations, Baburaj, an office bearer in the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (A.M.M.A), suspected that vested interests in the film industry were behind it. He claimed that the allegation was an attempt to prevent him from becoming the general secretary of AMMA, replacing Siddique, who had resigned on Sunday amid similar charges."

Meanwhile, the serious and elaborative revelation of sexual harassment charges against two-time CPI (M) legislator M Mukesh by the woman actor brought embarrassment to the state government.

Though the opposition parties have been accusing the Left government of protecting predators and ignoring the revelations of victim women, the ministers and the ruling MLAs put up a defence, pointing to the formation of a special investigation team for probing the allegations raised by women professionals in the industry.

However, the continuing allegations against Mukesh, who represents Kollam constituency in the Assembly, put the CPI (M)-led government under pressure.

A similar harassment allegation levelled by a woman against Mukesh years ago resurfaced on Sunday amidst discussions on the Hema panel report.

Hours after Minu Muneer levelled the fresh allegations against Mukesh in series of interviews with news channels on Monday, workers from Yuva Morcha and Mahila Congress organised separate marches towards his residence in Kollam, demanding that a case be registered against him and that he resign as a legislator.

Opposition leader V D Satheesan said he expects that, like Ranjith and Siddique, Mukesh will also step down from his power position in the wake of allegations against him.

Reacting to the revelations against Mukesh, Higher Education Minister R Bindhu said any accusation against any person should be examined on factual grounds.

"The wrongdoers should be punished. Innocent people should not be penalised," she told media here.

Eminent writer Sara Joseph and Kerala Chalachitra Academy vice chairman Premkumar raised objections against the reported inclusion of Mukesh in the film policy committee of the upcoming cinema conclave of the state government.

"The inclusion of Mukesh on the panel is ridiculous. He should resign as MLA if he has any self pride," Joseph said.

The Kollam MLA has not responded to the fresh allegations yet.

Responding to the questions about the resurfacing of the years-old allegations on Sunday, Mukesh had said that he was deliberately targetted by some vested interests as he is a CPI (M) MLA.

The female actor also levelled sexual abuse allegations against three other prominent actors in the Malayalam film industry.

Meanwhile, actor Maniyanpilla Raju, who was among the prominent actors named by her, has called for an investigation into the charges surfacing in the Malayalam film industry.

He told scribes that many more revelations will come out, and there will be multiple interests behind them.

"Some people will try to capitalise on the situation. Among those accused, there will be both innocent and guilty parties. Therefore, a comprehensive investigation is necessary," Raju said.

This development comes a day after director Ranjith and actor Siddique stepped down from their leadership roles in a state-run film academy and the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA), respectively, following sexual abuse allegations against them.

Amid mounting pressure on the government to take action against alleged predators in the film industry, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday announced the establishment of a seven-member special team to probe the atrocities faced by women actors.

The report by the Justice Hema Committee, constituted by the Kerala government post the 2017 actress assault case, has revealed instances of harassment and exploitation of women in the Malayalam cinema industry, prompting calls for action against the guilty.