MeToo MeToo deluge hits Mollywood: Actor-turned-MLA Mukesh dropped from state government's film body panel
Actor Mukesh, who is also a CPI(M) MLA, has been removed from a state government panel to formulate cinema-related policies, days after the Justice Hema Committee report was released triggering a MeToo storm in Mollywood.
Minu Muneer had accused Mukesh and Jayasurya of abusing her on the set of a movie in 2013.
She even alleged that Mukesh made unwanted advances when she sought his help to join the an organization of the actors.
"There is a lot of exploitation in this industry. I am a witness and victim. When I moved to Chennai, nobody reached out to me, asking me what had happened..." she told NDTV.
Mukesh, however, denied all allegations levelled against him.
In a Facebook post, he said: "The truth must come out.Will face legal action I welcome inquiries into the allegations leveled against filmmakers including myself. An objective and transparent investigation is essential in this regard."
He claimed Muneer first approached him in 2009 and then in 2022 and asked for "at least ₹ 1 lakh" and her husband then demanded "a huge amount of money" from him.
He said: "Strong legal action will be taken against such people."
The Kerala Police have filed an FIR against director Ranjith after sexual harassment allegations were levelled against him amid a deluge of similar claims made by female actors against top names in the Mollywood industry.
The case was reportedly filed against the director after Bengali actress Sreelekha Mitra filed a complaint against him with the Kochi city police commissioner.
The complaint, sent via an email to the police, alleged that Ranjith had touched the actress inappropriately with sexual intent after inviting her to act in the movie ‘Paleri Manikyam’ in 2009, reports Hindustan Times.
Meanwhile, southern superstar Mohanlal has quit as president of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA), days after allegations of sexual assault and rape hit several top names in the Mollywood industry.
According to reports, all members of the film body's executive committee have resigned.
The film body said a new committee would be formed following the elections in two months.
The Mollywood industry received a shock after top names faced sexual assault complaints following the public release of the Justice Hema Committee report recently.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan convened a high-level meeting amid mounting pressure and decided to establish a seven-member special team to probe the atrocities women actors and others faced in the industry.
With tension rising, Director Ranjith and actor Siddique resigned from state-run film academy and the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (A.M.M.A).
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