Charges filed against filmmaker Ranjith after fresh allegations of sexual abuse

The filmmaker denies the allegations.

Thiruvananthapuram:

The fallout from the Justice K Hema Commission’s report on harassment and abuse in the Malayalam film industry grew worse on Monday when a case was filed against noted filmmaker Ranjith and several female actors came forward with disturbing stories of abuse they faced at the hands of their male colleagues.

Ranjith was charged after a Bengali actress filed a complaint with the Kochi city police chief on Monday.

The complaint, sent via email, alleged that Ranjith had inappropriately touched her for sexual purposes after he invited her to act in the 2009 film Paleri Manikyam.

According to Kochi police chief S Syamsundar, a case has been registered against Ranjith under Section 354 of the Penal Code (assault or violence to a woman with intent to outrage her modesty).

Another actress, Minu Muneer, who has acted in a number of films, made allegations of sexual abuse against prominent actors M Mukesh, who is also an MLA, Jayasurya and Maniyanpilla Raju, as well as small-time actor Idavela Babu who plays a prominent role in the actors’ fraternity.

A more famous actress from the 1990s also came forward Monday with allegations of misconduct from years ago against a well-known filmmaker. She has agreed to give a statement to police.

The filmmaker denies the allegations.

In a Facebook post, Minu Muneer said, “I am writing to report series of incidents of physical and verbal abuse that I have been subjected to by 1 Mukesh 2 Maniyan Pilla Raju, 3 Idavela Babu, 4 Jayasoorya (Jayasurya), 5 Adv Chandrasekaran, 6 Production Controller Noble and Vichu, in the Malayalam film industry.” “In 2013, I was subjected to physical and verbal abuse by these individuals while I was working on a project. I tried to cooperate and continue working but the abuse became unbearable,” alleged the actress, who signed as Minu Kurian in her Facebook post.

Except for Maniyanpilla Raju, none of the actors have responded.

On the same day, a young artist accused actor Baburaj, known for his villainous roles, of sexual abuse.

Baburaj, a board member of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA), denied the allegations and alleged that it was an attempt by vested interests in the film industry to prevent him from becoming the AMMA’s general secretary. He was to replace Siddique, who resigned on Sunday amid similar allegations.

Meanwhile, the serious and detailed revelations of sexual harassment allegations against two-time CPI(M) legislator M Mukesh have embarrassed the state government.

While opposition parties accuse the left-wing government of protecting the predators, leaders defend themselves by saying a special investigation team has been set up to look into the allegations.

However, the persistent allegations against Mukesh, who represents Kollam constituency in the assembly, have put pressure on the CPI(M)-led government.

Also on Sunday, an allegation of harassment that a woman made against Mukesh years ago surfaced.

Hours after Minu Muneer levelled allegations against Mukesh on Monday, workers of Yuva Morcha and Mahila Congress organised separate marches to his residence in Kollam, demanding that a case be filed against him and that he resign from the legislature.

Opposition leader VD Satheesan expects Mukesh, like Ranjith and Siddique, to also resign.

Reacting to the revelations against Mukesh, Higher Education Minister R Bindhu said that every allegation against a person should be investigated on factual grounds. “The wrongdoers should be punished. Innocent people should not be punished,” she told the media here.

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

“Mukesh’s addition to the panel is ridiculous. He should resign as MLA if he has any self-respect,” Joseph said.

Mukesh alleges that he is being deliberately targeted by vested interests because he is a CPI(M) MLA.

The female actor who accused him has also made allegations of sexual abuse against three other prominent Malayalam actors.

Actor Maniyanpilla Raju has called for a full-scale investigation. “Some people will try to take advantage of the situation,” he opined. “Among the accused, there will be innocent as well as guilty parties. Therefore, a comprehensive investigation is necessary.” Meanwhile, lead actor Prithviraj has called for corrective action by AMMA and a comprehensive investigation into the various allegations.

It came a day after director Ranjith and actor Siddique resigned as directors of Kerala Chalachitra Academy and AMMA respectively, following allegations of sexual abuse against them.

Amid mounting pressure on the government, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday announced the formation of a seven-member special investigation team to probe the allegations made following the release of the Hema Commission report.

However, there is no reason to investigate the revelations of female victims in the Hema Commission report.

The report by the Justice Hema Committee, set up by the Kerala government after the 2017 sexual assault case of an actress, has brought to light cases of harassment and exploitation of women in the Malayalam cinema industry, leading to calls for action against the culprits.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published via a syndicated feed.)