How toxic is the Malayalam film industry? Why was the Hema committee report delayed?

Hema Commission’s newly released report has exposed some shocking revelations about the Malayalam Film Industry, known for its out-of-the-box yet relevant stories. The report is also an expose of the toxicity of the people that work there and how they have been misusing their power and clout to prey on women that have the desire to act and be on celluloid.

While the casting couch continued to be a significant issue, sexual favours and compromises have created a dangerous and unequal environment in Mollywood. “Was shocked to hear accounts of sexual abuse, harassment faced by victims in Malayalam film industry,” the report which was released after 5 years.

Why was the report delayed?

The release of the much-awaited Justice K Hema Committee report, which studied issues faced by women in the Malayalam film industry, was delayed as the Kerala government on reportedly decided to wait for the outcome of an actress’ plea against its publication.

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Earlier, the publication of the report, which was to be released on July 24, was put on hold by the Kerala High Court on a plea moved by a Malayalam film producer.

Subsequently, the High Court dismissed the plea on August 13 and directed the government to make the report public within a week from then.

What does the report say?

“Women in cinema frequently feel unsafe going to work alone. Numerous testimonies reveal that sexual demands are commonly tied to employment opportunities, making it vastly different from other professions. In fields like teaching, medicine, or engineering, women are not subjected to such conditions. For these jobs, demonstrating one’s skills and passing an interview is usually enough to secure employment. However, in the film industry, the casting couch remains a troubling reality,” the report observed

”Cinema is a male-dominated industry. It is an exclusive Boys’ Club where men sit and chat over long hours at night discussing the script of a movie or other aspects of the project at hand or future projects,” reads the Committee’s report. In many cases, these discussions take place over alcohol. “After drinking, the conversation does not always stay focused on just movies. In such digressions they may crack vulgar jokes with sexual innuendos,” the report further said.

It further explains that “there is a culture of silence that shrouds Malayalam movie (industry), which is partly a fear psychosis engendered by the working of the power nexus that controls” the industry.

The Hema Committee report was formed in 2017 by the Kerala Government based on a petition by the Women in Cinema Collective to study the challenges faced by women in the industry.

Despite the prevalence of sexual harassment & abuse in the film industry, females are  reluctant the majority of the time to report these criminal offences to the police.

Actress  Parvathy Thiruvothu , who has been vocal about her thoughts and often speaks about gender equality in cinema, expressed her mixed feelings about the release of the report. “I am not okay with people saying, ‘The Malayalam industry is so rotten inside.’ No, we are good inside, which is why we are fixing it. The places where you don’t hear anything about, that’s where we should be worried,” Parvathy said while talking to NDTV .

Describing the sense of achievement as “bitter-sweet,” she revealed, “The first deposition happened sometime in 2018, and the report was submitted in 2019. It took so many years for it to come out. In these years, we had to beg, grovel, and fight.”

“The Justice Hema Committee Report is a study of malpractices in the film industry. The report was generated to work toward better workplace culture and practices. But now, people are more focused on sensationalising aspects of it. It’s still a struggle to bring the focus back to what matters,” she added.