Kerala: Male actor accuses director Ranjith of taking, sharing nude photos

Actor Mohanlal on Saturday broke his silence on the Justice Hema Committee’s report on alleged sexual abuse in the Malayalam film industry, saying those guilty must be punished. Meanwhile, a man accused director Ranjith of sexual misconduct.

The ruling CPI (M) stood firmly in defense of its rape-accused MLA, M Mukesh, amid demands for his resignation.

Here are the top 10 developments in Kerala’s Me Too movement.

The Kerala police on Saturday filed the second sexual misconduct case against film director Ranjith. Days after a Bengali actress filed a misconduct complaint against him, a male actor filed a similar complaint against him on Friday.

The complainant alleged Ranjith called him to a hotel in Bengaluru in 2012, asked him to strip and clicked his nude photos. He allegedly sent the photos to a Malayalam actress.

On Friday night, an FIR under section 377 (unnatural offence) of the IPC and section 66 E (punishment for violation of privacy) of the Information Technology (IT) Act was lodged against the director.

Meanwhile, the ruling party said that just because a rape complaint had been filed against Mukesh, he mustn’t resign or be removed. CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan asked if the MLA resigns on moral grounds, will he be brought back if he is proven innocent. He said the party has decided that Mukesh must not be part of the film-making policy committee.

Mohanlal, one of the biggest stars of the industry, who quit as the president of the AMMA (Association of Malayalam Movie Artists) following sexual abuse allegations against some of its members, said the entire film industry is answerable for the scandal. Lamenting that only the actors’ body was blamed for everything, he said Malayalam cinema is a huge industry where thousands of people work. “It is not right to crucify an outfit alone for all these issues,” he added.

Mohanlal further said he never ran away from his responsibilities but could not appear before the media over the past few days because he was away from the state due to personal and professional commitments.

Mohanlal said he wasn’t a part of any power group in the industry. “I am not part of any power group in Malayalam cinema and not aware of the existence of any such group. I have heard about it for the first time,” the actor said.

The Film Employees Federation of Kerala (FEFKA), meanwhile, made it clear that it won’t protect its accused members. FEFKA, an apex body of 21 trade unions, said it would voluntarily hand over relevant information to the police if the outfit came to know about any such complaint. “We won’t take any immediate action if just an FIR is lodged against any of our members. But, if the police later file any report, the court makes any mention against the person or he is arrested, the individual will be suspended,” said its general secretary B Unnikrishnan.

Veteran actress Radhika Sarathkumar claimed objectionable videos of female actors were recorded using hidden cameras inside caravans on the shooting set of a Malayalam film. She said she saw male actors watching such videos on their mobile phones. “I have seen this. I have seen videos of women changing clothes in caravans,” she said.

The opposition – Congress and BJP and their respective youth and women wings – has intensified its state-wide protest demanding Mukesh’s resignation.