Kerala Police Registers FIR Against Malayalam Filmmaker Ranjith After Sexual Assault Complaint By Sreelekha Mitra
Sreelekha Mitra accused Ranjith of "making advances" and misbehaving with her while they were discussing a script years ago.
The Kerala Police filed a FIR against filmmaker Ranjith on Monday, the first in the wake of several recent sexual harassment allegations against male Mollywood actors. Many female actors have come forward with alarming accounts of mistreatment by their male counterparts.
FIR against filmmaker Ranjith
The case was filed against Ranjith after Bengali actress Sreelekha Mitra reported to the Kochi City Police Commissioner on Monday.
The complaint, which was filed via email, alleged that Ranjith had touched her inappropriately with sexual intent after urging her to appear in the film 'Paleri Manikyam' in 2009. Ranjith has been charged under IPC Section 354 (assault or criminal force on a woman with intent to outrage her modesty), according to Kochi Police Commissioner S Syamsundar.
On Saturday, Sreelekha Mitra accused Ranjith of "making advances" and misbehaving with her while they were discussing a script years ago.
“The person concerned (Ranjith) is a big name in the Malayalam film industry and a national award-winning director. I went to his residence to discuss an upcoming film project, and I did not like his behaviour. He made certain advances subtly, and I felt uncomfortable while we were discussing the script,” PTI quoted her as saying.
The actor stated that after the misbehaviour, she refused to take part in the project and returned to Kolkata.
“I don't know if he has treated other female actors in the film industry in the same way. It is up to them to open up or not if they have faced a similar situation. Maybe his power and influence played a role for others to not speak out,” she added.
Ranjith, on the other hand, denied the actor's charges, saying that he was the "real victim" in the case.
Following the charges, Ranjit resigned as the chairman of the Kerala Chalachitra Academy. In an audio clip, he stated that he did not want to remain as chairman since it would “adversely impact the reputation of the Left government.”
Sexual assault allegations in Mollywood
Another actress, Minu Muneer, who has starred in a few films, accused famous actors M Mukesh, who is also an MLA, Jayasurya, and Maniyanpilla Raju of sexual abuse, as well as small-time actor Idavela Babu, who plays a major part in the actors' union.
In a Facebook post, Minu Muneer said, "I am writing to report a series of incidents of physical and verbal abuse I suffered at the hands of 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 working on a project. I tried to cooperate and continue working, but the abuse became unbearable," the actress, who signed as Minu Kurian in her Facebook post, alleged.
On the same day, a junior artist accused actor Baburaj, known for playing villains, of sexual assault.
Baburaj, an office bearer in the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (A.M.M.A), denied the allegations and claimed it was an attempt by powerful groups in the film business to block him from becoming A.M.M.A general secretary, succeeding Siddique, who resigned on Sunday under similar charges.
Meanwhile, the state government was embarrassed when sexual harassment charges against two-time CPI(M) legislator M Mukesh were revealed in such detail.
Though opposition parties have accused the Left government of protecting predators, its leaders have responded by claiming that a special investigation team has been formed to look into the charges.
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