Hema Justice Commission Report Exposes Exploitation in Malayalam Film Industry, Kerala Opposition Demands Inquiry

The long-awaited report by the Justice Hema Committee examining the challenges and working conditions faced by women in the Malayalam film industry was finally made public on Monday.

Hours after the damning report of the Justice K Hema Commission on the conditions of women working in the Malayalam film industry, with shocking revelations about how women are sexually exploited in the industry, was finally released on Monday, Leader of the Opposition in Kerala, V D Satheesan, slammed the Pinarayi Vijayan government for keeping the report under wraps since 2019. The report was kept under wraps for over five years after it was first presented to the government in 2019. The publication of the 235-page document, 65 of which have been redacted to protect individual privacy, had sparked widespread debate.

The state government spent Rs 1.50 crore on the report prepared in 2019 by Justice Hema (retired), who was appointed by the Vijayawada government in 2017. However, the report was made public only on Monday after a protracted legal battle, despite last-minute attempts to delay its publication.

“This is a serious crime committed by the Vijayan government and we want to know why this report was kept in cold storage. Was it to save those who did the exploitation? The need of the hour is a special police investigation team headed by a top woman IPS officer and arrest all the culprits, whoever they are and wherever they are posted,” Satheesan said.

Saji Cherian, the minister of state for culture and films, noted that he has not received any complaints of exploitation in his more than three years in office. “Now a report has been published and it talks about such things, but I am ready to order an inquiry if there is a complaint. I want to inform everyone that no one needs to worry and any woman who comes with a complaint will not face any coercion,” he said.

“We are holding a conclave in the coming months where all the leading figures from the film industry from different segments will be invited and a superficial discussion will take place and all burning issues will be addressed,” Cherian added.

Report of the Hema Justice Committee

The 289-page report by the Hema committee begins: “The sky is full of mysteries; with the twinkling stars and the beautiful moon. But scientific research has shown that stars do not twinkle and the moon does not look beautiful. The study therefore warns: do not trust what you see, even salt looks like sugar.”

It further said: “The experiences that many women have gone through in cinema are really shocking and so serious that they have not even shared those details with their immediate family members. Surprisingly, during our research we came to know that certain men had also faced a lot of problems in the industry and that many of them, including some very prominent artists, had been unauthorisedly banned from working in cinema for a considerable period of time. It was shocking to know that the only reason for such an unauthorised ban was due to very foolish reasons. They might have consciously or unconsciously ‘invited the wrath of some person from the powerful lobby in the industry, which rules the industry.’

“The biggest problem faced by women in the film industry is sexual harassment. It is the worst evil faced by women in the industry. Most of the women in the industry, who are known to be very brazen, hesitate to share their bad experiences in the industry, especially sexual harassment. They are afraid to tell even their colleagues in the industry, fearing the consequences they may face. They fear that if they share their problems with others, they will be ostracized from the film world and exposed to other forms of harassment, as such persons are powerful in the film world and all the men in the film world support them. By using fans and fan clubs, there would be severe online harassment against them (female artists) on social media. They would also face threats to their lives, not only for themselves but even for their close family members, as stated by several witnesses. Thus, they are silenced in the film world,” Justice Hema’s report stated.

“According to women in cinema, the harassment starts right from the beginning. From the statements of various witnesses heard by the commission, it appears that the production manager or the person making an offer for a role in cinema first approaches the woman/girl or, if it is the other way around, and a woman approaches a person in cinema seeking an opportunity in cinema, she is told to make ‘adjustments’ and ‘compromises’ to get her into cinema. ‘Compromises’ and ‘adjustments’ are two terms very familiar to women in the Malayalam film industry and they are asked to make themselves available for sex on demand,” it continued.

“There may be cases of consensual sex, but women in cinema are generally not willing to share a bed to get a chance in cinema. Another witness stated before the committee that there can also be women who are willing to adapt to the demands and she herself has seen certain mothers who manipulate the situation to their advantage and believe that there is nothing wrong with it. The witness stated that this is a shocking reality. According to women in cinema, it is a sad situation that a woman has to give in to sexual demands to get a job in cinema, while there is no such situation in any other field, as was noted by many witnesses questioned before the committee,” the report concluded.

(With IANS inputs)