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Hema Committee report being submitted to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan by panel members on December 31, 2019
The K. Hema committee report on problems faced by women in the Malayalam film industry, published on Monday five years after it was submitted to the Kerala government, revealed horrific tales of sexual exploitation, illegal restrictions, discrimination, drug and alcohol abuse, pay disparity and, in some cases, inhuman working conditions.
The 235-page report, published after deleting names of witnesses and accused, said the Malayalam film industry is in the clutches of a few male producers, directors and actors, whom a leading actor termed a “mafia”, as they can ban anyone from the industry.
The committee confirmed the rumours of the existence of the practice of “casting couch” in the industry. Unlike other sectors, sexual harassment begins even before one starts working in the film industry as sexual favours are demanded in exchange for roles by very famous people in the industry. Some witnesses provided video clips, audio clips and screenshots of WhatsApp messages as evidence of casting couch attempts.
Many women find it unsafe to stay alone in their assigned accommodation during shoots, as drunken men habitually knock on their doors. The report states that witnesses also reported attempts to force their way into their rooms. One particular case mentions an actress who had to play the role of her abuser’s wife the very next day of the incident, which left the victim extremely traumatised. In an effort to convince newcomers, some in the industry actively create the impression that successful women have achieved success through “compromise”.
reasonable apprehensions
Many of the women investigated by the committee were afraid to disclose their experiences because they felt that they could be harmed by it. This fear is justified. The committee has expressed concern that they fear for their own safety and that of their close relatives. The experiences that many women working in the film industry have had are so severe that they did not disclose these things even to their close family members.
They rarely approach the police as they fear cyber attacks due to the powerful people in the industry as well as their public profile. Another example of the fear prevailing in the industry was seen when the Hema Committee created a WhatsApp group with the dancers of the industry, most of which left the group one by one after hearing the intentions of the committee. The same happened with junior artists, who are one of the most exploited people in the industry.
Producers are warned by the industry’s “power groups” not to cast actors who are not in their favour. Even the release of films can be stopped because the Film Chamber of Commerce has to issue NOCs. Production controllers play a key role in getting people banned from cinemas. Members of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), following whose demand the Hema Committee was formed, are banned from cinemas because the organisation raises its voice against atrocities against women.
The report highlights the lack of changing rooms or toilet facilities on sets, especially in outdoor locations, which causes many women to suffer from urinary infections. The committee also mentioned that some men, including a leading actor, who testified before it said the issue need not be taken seriously.
In some cases junior artistes are “treated worse than slaves”, where they are made to work up to 19 hours a day. Middlemen pocket a large portion of their payment, which is not paid on time. In the case of a big-budget film, a 70-year-old woman who suffered severe burns due to an accident on set was not given any money for treatment. Junior artistes are not admitted into any film organisation.
Lack of a written contract
The lack of a written contract is also exploited by some to deprive actors and technicians of even the remuneration promised to them verbally. An example is of an actress, the lead character in a film, who was forced to perform an intimate scene. When she was pressured to perform more erotic scenes, she left the set without claiming remuneration for the days she had worked. But the director insisted that unless she personally came to Kochi, he would not remove the intimate scenes already filmed.
Junior artistes do not receive minimum remuneration. Assistant and associate directors are paid very little remuneration for working for months at a stretch. They do not even receive daily allowances. Their work is not clearly defined, while arduous pre-production work is not counted as ‘work’. A witness narrated the case of a female scriptwriter who had woven the theme of gender justice into the script, but the director ruined the script so much that the writer was reluctant to take credit.
The Hema Committee said that the internal complaints committee may be ineffective as powerful individuals may threaten or force ICC members to settle the complaint as per their demand. It also raises doubts about the confidentiality of information given to the ICC, if it is constituted with industry people, causing further harassment to the complainants. The committee has recommended the government to make a proper law and set up a tribunal to address all the issues faced by women in cinema.
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