The #MeToo movement, which has been sweeping through the Kerala film industry, is now starting to affect the Tamil cinema.
A couple of days after Rajinikanth, a popular actor, mentioned he had no knowledge of the latest happenings in Malayalam cinema, in light of the damning discoveries of the Justice Hema Committee regarding extensive sexual abuse in the Kerala film sector, actress Sowmya informed NDTV that she had been manipulated and coerced into becoming a ‘sex slave’ by a famous filmmaker from Tamil Nadu.
During the interview, she revealed her difficult history and mentioned being manipulated since she was 18 years old. She opted to not reveal the director’s identity, but stated that she had already shared that information with Kerala’s Special Investigation Team (SIT), which focuses on investigating abuse cases in the film industry. She says she was manipulated and sexually assaulted, but it took her three decades to overcome the embarrassment and recover.
Sowmya remembered that the filmmaker reached out to her father about offering her a role in a movie through connections from her college theatre group. Despite feeling unsettled during their first encounter, she was motivated to take on the role because of the director’s strong commitment. Despite her showing of hesitation, she was informed that the project would be overseen by the director’s wife, but in actuality, he remained as the head.
While on set, she rejected his inappropriate advances and then felt uneasy because of the director’s “angry silent treatment,” which she described as making her anxious about upsetting him.
She also mentioned that the director and his wife frequently asked her to come to their house, where they would treat her to delicious food. She also discussed how her defiance led to anger and retribution.
One day, in the absence of his wife, this man referred to me as his daughter and kissed me. I was totally immobilized. I wanted to share with my friends so badly but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. Sowmya confessed feeling ashamed, believing she was in the wrong and had to be kind to the man.
She also mentioned that the director’s daughter, who was not on good terms with him at the time, had accused him of rape and was not residing with the director or his wife. She was convinced that their daughter was not telling the truth.
Sowmya is among the countless women who are sharing their dreadful experiences of sexual harassment in the film industry.
Since the Hema report, many more incidents were reported after the Kerala Film Industry #MeToo movement came into the spotlight with a series of distressing allegations. The sector has recently seen disclosures of harassment, abuse, and dangerous all-male subcultures, leading to intense scrutiny and calls for accountability. Some of Kerala’s most prominent stars, including Siddique, Jayasurya, Mukesh, and director Ranjith, in addition to other actors known to the public, have been accused of sexual misconduct.
The described accounts of the survivors seem to reveal the masked and protected practices of abuse.
The ongoing turmoil has rekindled a broader discussion concerning the issues in the sector and the need to address these constraints to protect those affected.
