What Kerala’s film industry needs to do to make the Hema Commission report meaningful

In February 2017, a leading Malayalam actress was abducted and sexually assaulted by a group of men when she returned from a shoot. A police investigation accused actor Dileep of being the mastermind behind the attack.

This horrific incident led to the formation of the Women in Cinema Collective in May of that year. One of the first actions of the WCC was to petition Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to set up a commission to investigate sexual harassment and gender discrimination in the Malayalam film industry.

The committee was headed by former Kerala High Court judge K Hema. Actor T Sarada and retired Principal Secretary to the Kerala government KB Valsalakumari were the other members. Though the panel’s report was finalised in 2019, its findings were not released due to legal challenges.

When the report finally came out on August 19 this year, it sent shockwaves not only in Kerala but also far beyond.

In addition to widespread sexual harassment, the report pointed to illegal labor practices (such as the denial of basic services to young artists and technicians) and the existence of a “mafia group” that had unbridled power over actors and filmmakers.

The findings continue to shake Kerala. Since the publication, women have openly alleged sexual harassment by prominent filmmakers and actors. Industry unions and associations have been criticized for downplaying the scale of the problem.

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For the Women in Cinema Collective, the report is bittersweet. On the one hand, the disturbing revelations support what the 42 members of the WCC have been saying all along. On the other hand, the political fallout has overshadowed their original intentions.

For a long-term view of the situation, Role spoke to Bina Paul, one of the founders of WCC. Paul, an alumnus of the Film and Television Institute of India, has edited critically acclaimed films (including Amma Ariyan, Mitr: My friend And Munnariyippu) and directed The sound of silencea documentary on gender segregation in colleges in Kerala. Paul was also the artistic director of the International Film Festival of Kerala for many years and currently directs the Dharamshala International Film Festival.

In the interview, Paul spoke about the short-term and possible long-term implications of an investigation that has revealed some of the worst-kept secrets of the Kerala film industry.

The report is a vindication of the Women in Cinema Collective’s positions. But given the consequences, the feeling is not one of victory, right?

Absolutely not. What the report has unleashed in its wake is disturbing.

It was very painful to hear so many women tell their stories. In retrospect, you may think this is a good thing and part of what is needed for some closure. But the first few days of listening to these stories were horrible.

The main reaction was one of total shock. Some of the women at WCC who work deep in the industry probably knew this, but the findings certainly exceeded my expectations. We’ve been saying for years that things aren’t going well. This is finally in black and white.

Apart from sexual harassment, the kind of things that judge Hema spoke about were surprising to everyone. Of course, there is disbelief among most people in the industry. There is also surprise in civil society and the government.

The report redacts the names of alleged perpetrators of abuse or questionable practices. What is your opinion on the anonymity afforded to alleged predators in particular?

I believe that while we knew many powerful sources behind such behavior, we did not play blame games. Personally, I was not so concerned about the omission of names. Even at WCC, we were much more interested in the findings of the report. It was much more important to read the report based on the data that Judge Hema had collected.

That said, given all that has happened, there are some heinous perpetrators, and since the redacted portions reference them, this should be taken very seriously.

While public attention has focused on sexual abuse, the report also discusses other long-standing problems, notably poor working conditions, the lack of formal contracts and the presence of a power group that controls entire careers.

The first letter that WCC wrote to the Chief Minister contained references to working conditions, lack of facilities, problems with pay, discrimination and human rights violations. These issues were so swept under the carpet that we felt that an investigation was necessary. We did raise issues of women’s safety and sexual harassment, but we were also concerned about working conditions, which is why we wanted the commission.

Judge Hema has systematically cited some very hard truths. What the report has achieved is that it points out that the film industry is a disorganized, almost feudal structure.

The report also notes that WCC members have been targeted by filmmakers for their activism.

It is always the twisted logic to put the target on women, by saying that anyone who asks a question is the problem. You are powerful enough to stop work, block people or even their social acceptance by not inviting them to shows.

Many of our members have spoken out about this. We know that there has been a systematic way to put down women who speak out.

Following the report, film star Mohanlal resigned as head of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes. Mohanlal and several others have spoken of attempts to “tarnish the image of the Malayalam film industry”.

Every women’s movement and every woman who speaks out faces patriarchal opposition. Women are seen as troublemakers.

People keep saying that the Malayalam film industry is a family that needs to be protected. That’s what families do, isn’t it? They always hide their dirty laundry.

And, in the face of so much that is coming out, who are you trying to protect? Are you saying that it is wrong to come out, or are you saying that something is wrong? I am not in this image story. We are not talking about image, we are talking about the harsh reality. We are not talking about this so-called family from the outside, but as insiders, saying: let’s do something together. This is not about causing problems, but about making things clear.

Malayalam cinema has been praised outside Kerala for its cheap, economical filmmaking practices. One implication of the report is that feudal networks have enabled films that benefit only a few and are dependent on cheap labour.

While there are many big budget films in Kerala, the report certainly seems to suggest that there is a lot of inequality. We know that small budget films don’t pay. The question is, is there systematic discrimination? If nobody gets paid, then nobody gets paid, then you work for the love of cinema. But if you are not paid at par with your colleagues, then there is a problem.

I am not sure if we can say that the industry is standing on this kind of discrimination. I am just saying that we need to use our minds. Of course, regional language films have smaller budgets. But are these budgets allocated without discrimination on the basis of gender or profession? A deeper investigation is needed, and that is exactly what WCC has been talking about.

There is some talk of boycotting or avoiding working with certain actors or directors who might avoid prosecution. Is this feasible, or even possible?

I wish it were so, but maybe it isn’t.

A lot of things also come from not having any perspective or understanding of gender. It’s unforgivable that some of the people involved have positions of power or authority. But for the majority, there needs to be some kind of healing, to say that what you did is completely wrong. If you have a female camera operator, you don’t comment on her appearance or her clothes. You take her seriously.

You have to hold people accountable. You have to hold people accountable who have proven that they abused their positions. What is also needed is a better understanding of what it means to live in a contemporary world where women are equal.

The Kerala government has set up a special investigation unit of police officers who contact the women and help them file cases. These decisions have to be individual. For some women, talking is itself a kind of closure. For others, they have to go all the way.

It’s hard to say. We know how the legal system is. You have to be prepared for a long flight. What happened in 2017 (the assault on the actor) is still going on in the courtroom, with no solution in sight.

What are the possible solutions?

There is no black and white, there is no prescription.

Anyone who has gone through these experiences needs to be guided to understand what it means. What we are also saying is, let’s put systems in place that don’t let this happen again – whether it’s POSH (Prevention of Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act) or gender sensitization or a tribunal as Judge Hema suggested.

These women are so brave. They have to make their own choices. All we at WCC can say is that we are with you, no matter where you go.

I am not for corporatization, nor for the kind of regulation where someone is sitting over your head and watching you. But there should be systems.

How do you register a film? How do you register your internal committee? What happens if this internal committee doesn’t work? Are there templates for contracts or timelines? These are the things that you can do as an industry yourself. You have associations and unions and all kinds of systems that can make it work.

This is what the Hema committee has put forward. I wish everyone patience. After the initial shock and commotion, there will be a serious study of the report or there should be a serious study of it.

We certainly do this at the WCC. Other civil society groups are looking at the labor issues. All these efforts together ensure that the report is not a one-sided affair. It will be unfair to judge Hema, to the women who spoke out, to the workers in the industry.

Always being in a position of suspicion is counterproductive. Let’s see what happens.

You have been an editor, filmmaker, teacher and film festival director. What is your own experience of sexism in the Malayalam film industry?

If I look at it honestly, as a film editor I was very young and worked with top directors, but I have to say I was shocked by the very male situation I found myself in.

As my career progressed, as an artistic director of a film festival, I was surrounded by patriarchy. No one attacked me directly, but there was so much attitude around me. Whether it was because I was a woman or an insufferable person, I don’t know.

Sure, it was patriarchal. It was men all the time. I had very few women to talk to. That was the kind of space. You had to navigate all the time, not just in the film world, but everywhere. This constant dealing with the male ego is quite a story.

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