Tovino Thomas Feels Malayalam Film Industry Being Targetted Despite Similar State Of Things Everywhere: 'Not Everyone In The Industry...'

The Justice Hema Committee report was released by the Kerala government on Monday, four-and-a-half years after it was submitted to the Kerala Chief Minister. 

The Justice Hema Committee report was released by the Kerala government on Monday, four-and-a-half years after it was submitted to the Kerala Chief Minister. 

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New Delhi: Actor Tovino Thomas opened up about the Justice Hema Committee report. Talking about how the report opened the lid on some of the 'terrible' things women have been suffering at the hands of the Malayalam film industry, he hoped that the audience would not think that the entire film community is a seat of evil.

The Justice Hema Committee report was released by the Kerala government on Monday, four-and-a-half years after it was submitted to the Kerala Chief Minister. 

The 233-page document makes shocking revelations about the discrimination and exploitation faced by women in the Malayalam film industry.

In an interview with the Indian Express, Tovino shared that he was called on by the committee to share inputs about the inner workings of the film industry, over the years.

What Tovino Thomas thinks about Hema Committee report

When asked about the steps that could be taken to make the workspace safe for women, Tovino told the puplication, "Yes I spoke to the committee. This committee was set up only in the Malayalam industry, that’s why we’re talking about things happening in the Malayalam film industry. If such a committee is set up in any other industry not just films, or anywhere in the world, you’d know that this problem exists even there. Now, if people say this happens only in the Malayalam film industry, it is hurtful for me because I’m a part of the industry.”

“Not everyone in the industry is going through that or perpetrating that. According to the report, people are going through those terrible things, and some have done that. But not everyone, I want to clarify that,” he added.

While Tovino shared that perpetrators of such acts should be given stringent punishment, he also added that the focus should also be on making the workspace safer for women.

“If someone has done such a terrible thing to anyone, be it a man or a woman, they should get the deserved punishment. They shouldn’t be spared, that’s the basic thing to do. They should not just be punished but we must ensure that this doesn’t happen again. That awareness, that education system must be there so that (the workspace is safer for women),” he said.

How the report came to be formed

On Februrary 17, a leading Malayalam film actress was abducted and sexually assaulted in her car by a group of men. A prominent actor was later implicated, suggesting his involvement in the case. The case sparked outrage across Kerala and brought to light the discrimatory treatment of women in the industry.

The Women in Cinema Collective(WCC) comprising women actors, producers and technicians was formed in response to the incident. The WCC then submitted a petition to the Kerala Chief Minister demanding an inquiry into the incident which led the state government to form a three-member committee headed by Justics K hema, a retired Kerala High Court judge, to look into issues of sexual harrassment and gender ineqaulity in the industry.