''There is a 'keeda' in all the industries and we will have to clean it up ourselves...,'' said Malayalam star Parvathy Thiruvothu, at a recent event. It was in response to the recent Hema Committee report which has exposed the dark and ugly underbelly of the Malayalam film industry. Several female celebs and junior artistes have shared their ordeals at the unethical workplaces, on sets, and how they faced extreme level of discrimination and sexual harassment. Parvathy has rightly said that there is a 'keeda' in all industries and Bengali film industry aka Tollywood also falls in the list. Ritabhari Chakraborty, one of the popular Bengali stars has come forward to share a lengthy Facebook post, where she has requested to initiate a similar investigation into the Bengali film industry.
On August 19, Justice K Hema Committee report was revealed where it exposed sexual exploitation, harassment and lobbying in the Malayalam film industry, also known as Mollywood. It also revealed that the presence of 'casting couch' and 'power group', are capable of controlling the entire industry. Ritabhari Chakraborty, in reference to the Hema Committee report, wrote in her Facebook post, "The Hema Commission report exposing the sexual assaults in the Malayalam film industry has left me thinking why is Bengali film industry not taking similar steps? So many reports that came up are similar to experiences I had or some actress I know did."
Though the 'Pari' actress didn't name anyone in her post, she requested her fellow actresses to stand against the 'monsters' and call out the 'predators'. "The hero/producer/directors with such filthy mind and behavior continue to work without facing any consequences of their actions and even seen holding candles for the RG Kar victim as if they think of women as anything better than flesh,'' she added.
Chakraborty further wrote, ''I know you are scared of losing your part or never been cast as most of these men are influential. But how long do we stay quiet? Do we have no responsibility towards the young actresses that come to the business with dreams and are made to believe this is nothing but a sugar coated brothel."
Towards the end of her post, the actress tagged West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and wrote, "We want a similar investigation, report and reform."
Have a look at Ritabhari Chakraborty's post here.
Senior Bengali actress Sreelekha Mitra had recently made some shocking revelations against renowned Malayalam director, Ranjith. On Monday, Mitra filed a complaint with the Kochi City Police against Ranjith. He had resigned as the chairman of the Kerala State Chalachithra Academy post the allegations.
The Hema Committee report has brought to the fore several other big names of the Malayalam film industry such as V K Prakash, actor-producer Maniyanpilla Raju, Jayasurya, and Edavela Babu.
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