Nayanthara issues statement against Radha Ravi's sexist comments; urges Nadigar Sangam to set up ICC

“Irrespective of all negative remarks and aspersions cast upon me, I shall continue to take up the multifaceted roles of Sita, ghost, Goddess, friend, wife, lover, so on and so forth with the sole intention of providing maximum entertainment to my fans”, said Nayanthara in an official statement against the misogynistic remarks by seasoned Tamil character artist Radha Ravi. [caption id=“attachment_4739821” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Nayanthara. Image from Facebook[/caption]

Speaking at the trailer launch of Nayanthara’s soon to be released Kolayuthir Kaalam, Radha Ravi said that in this generation, actresses who have respectable image and actresses whom audiences ogle at are roped in to play goddesses. At the trailer launch, Ravi also mentioned that Nayanthara plays both ghost and Goddess Sita. Known for neither addressing any public gathering nor reacting much to any criticism, Nayanthara said that she was compelled to issue a detailed statement for the cause of women who bear the brunt of male chauvinism. “I rarely issue public statements, as I have always allowed my professional work to speak for itself. However desperate times mandate desperate measures. Today, I am compelled to issue a detailed statement so as to clarify my own position and also to champion the cause of women who bear the brunt of male insensitivities and sexism”, said the actress. The Viswasam actress also thanked (Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) DMK President MK Stalin for his swift action against Ravi, a star speaker of his party. Ravi has been temporarily suspended from DMK following his derogatory speech against Nayanthara. “It is my bounden duty to place on record my sincere thanks and deepest appreciation to the President of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Thiru MK Stalin for swiftly taking action against misogynistic speeches of Thiru Radha Ravi”, she said. Nayanthara said being a senior actor, Radha Ravi should have led the younger generation but sadly, he has set the wrong precedence with his misogynistic speech. The actress also said her empathy remains with all the women belongs to the family of Ravi. “I feel terribly sorry for the way they treat women in an opinionated way and my empathy remains with all the women who live in the families of these ‘macho’ men. As an actor of considerable seniority and work experience, Mr Radha Ravi should have led the younger generation by example, instead, he has chosen to take up the role of a misogynist ‘role model’. These are troubled times for women, as women are establishing themselves predominantly in every field of public life and asserting their due place in this era of meritocracy. When actors like Mr Radha Ravi fall out of business and become irrelevant, they tend to rely on cheap popularity tactics in order to grab some limelight. What remains ghastly shocking about his male chauvinistic speeches are that he never ceases to get applause and laughs from some members of the audience”, said Nayanthara. When Radha Ravi passed such lewd comments against the actress, audiences and film fraternities were seen laughing for his speech. Nayanthara said that audiences shouldn’t encourage such speakers. “As long as the audience encourage sexist remarks, speakers like Mr Radha Ravi will continue to thrive on misogyny and cracking of denigrating jokes against women. I strongly urge well-intentioned citizens and my beloved fans to deeply discourage the behavior of the likes of Mr Radha Ravi. Notwithstanding the aforesaid advisory, through this statement, I would like to strongly register my condemnation and protest against the derogatory speeches made by Mr.Radha Ravi against women and children in general and me in specific”. The actress ended her statement by urging the South Indian Artistes’ Association(SIAA)/Nadigar Sangam to set up an internal committee to address the grievances of women actors and technicians in film fraternity by following Vishakha Guidelines. “Lastly, my humble question to the South Indian Artistes’ Association (Nadigar Sangam):- Will you set up the Internal Complaints Committee as per the Honorable Supreme Court’s dictum and commence an internal inquiry as per Vishakha Guidelines?”, said Nayanthara.