The release of the Hema Committee Report and its findings has shaken not just the Malayalam film industry but other film industries as well. On Saturday, Tamil actor Radhika Sarathkumar made some further revelations while speaking to Thanthi TV. 

The actor, who has worked across all south Indian film industries, said she has been in the world of films for 46 years. “This is not just happening in Malayalam cinema but across all industries. While working on a Malayalam film, I caught some men looking at videos of actresses changing clothes in their caravans and was furious. They used hidden cameras to capture all this. I raised my voice against this with the team and stopped using caravans altogether,” she said. 

“Women who come into cinema come up through hard work and after a lot of sacrifices. It has happened to all of us, even me - politicians and some big names whom I don’t wish to call out - harass women. When women raise a complaint, they ask us for proof – do they expect us to shoot a video of the incident? Women are fighting for their rights today. Look at the Tamil film industry – has any man spoken up about this?” asked Radhika.

“In Mollywood, they (AMMA committee) all resigned en masse. Now, the responsibility falls on the women again – they have lost their career and faced so much abuse. Recently in Ullozhuku, actor Parvathy had acted so well with Urvashi. I asked someone in the Malayalam film industry why she doesn’t get any award for her performances and they said it’s because she speaks up against injustice and such issues. Such a talented person is being treated like this,” said Radhika.

Radhika Sarathkumar on the situation in Tamil film industry

Coming to Tamil cinema, Radhika raised the issue of well-known singer Chinmayi’s allegation against National Award-winning lyricist Vairamuthu. The singer raised this issue in 2018 in the wake of the global Me Too Movement and was shadowbanned by the Tamil film industry as a result. 

“Chinmayi made an allegation against someone; how many people believed her? Everyone asked why she hadn’t spoken up earlier but there are so many things that go through a woman’s mind. A man can’t understand that. Chinmayi is talented but has lost opportunities and so much work. Who spoke up for her? Till date, she is bold and still talking about it. Whether the incident happened or not, I don’t know but why don’t people believe her. Today, I saw a YouTube video where a man, who’s not a journalist, has alleged that all actresses in the film industry sleep around to come up in their career. Vishal is the general secretary of the Nadigar Sangam (Actors’ Association) so if he has guts, let him go and slipper that man who said this. I’ll go with Vishal,” said Radhika angrily.

The actor also stressed that if women working in the Tamil film industry are affected by sexual harassment or sexual abuse, they have no recourse as there is no POSH committee and even the Nadigar Sangam has no complaint redressal system. When asked about the Nadigar Sangam, she angrily asked how many men in the committee were themselves free of any blemish. She urged that producers, actors and everyone in the industry need to come together and say that they support these women with complaints. She added that they should form a safe group for these women where they can speak up and also give a timely resolution.

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