Amidst the shocking findings of the Justice Hema Committee report on rampant sexual misconduct in the Malayalam film industry, popular South Indian actress Radhika Sarathkumar has made startling allegations. In a recent interview, she said that the ordeals of actresses aren’t limited only to Malayalam cinema but also to the Tamil and Telugu industries.
Recounting her own experience, she said that hidden cameras were secretly installed inside the vanity vans on the shooting set of a Malayalam film to record videos of actresses, specifically while they were changing clothes. She asserted that she had personally witnessed male actors watching such objectionable videos on their mobile phones.
She told a news channel, “I have seen this. I have seen videos of women changing clothes in caravans.” She added that they had folders of actresses with their names.
Speaking with Asianet News’ ‘Namaste Kerala’ about the findings of Justice Hema Committee report, Radhika Sarathkumar recalled, “While I was on a set in Kerala, I saw people gathered together and laughing at something. As I passed by, I noticed they were watching a video. I called a crew member and asked him what they were watching. I was told there were cameras in the vanity vans and footage of women changing clothes was captured using the same. I was told you should just type the name of the artiste, and you will find a video of them changing dresses. I saw the video.”
However, she refused to divulge other details, including names of the film or the actors who were allegedly watching the illicit videos. She said, “If we spit looking upwards, it will fall on our face only. So I don’t want to take names”.
Radhika added that after this incident, she was so scared that she started using her hotel room to change clothes and was careful about her presence inside the vanity van.
She further stated, “This system is wrong. After the incident, I told other female artists about the hidden cameras. I was afraid to go into my vanity van after the incident. It is a private space for us to change, to take rest, or to have food.”
According to her, she herself saw such objectionable videos of actresses and had warned the staff against using cameras in the vanity van.
She added, “I have seen videos of women changing clothes in vans. I confronted the team and told them this was not right. I told the van team that I would hit them with chappals [slippers] if I found a camera in the vehicle. I was angry. I insisted that I wanted to be safe and didn’t want the van at all. They then told me that they will look into it.”
The veteran actress also recalled her own experience of encountering misconduct. She raised questions over the delay in releasing the findings of the Justice Hema Committee and slammed the actors for not speaking up on this issue. Radhika urged actresses to take this responsibility on their shoulders.
She said, “I was wondering why there was so much delay in the release of the Justice Hema Committee report. I have been in the industry for 46 years. Of course, there have been people who have tried to misbehave with me. Women should be empowered to say ‘No’ when such incidents happen to them. No man has said anything in any industry. So the onus is back on women. Now, they have to shoulder this responsibility of safeguarding themselves.”
Reacting to Radhika Sarathkumar’s statement, RMP leader K K Rema expressed shock. She told the media, “What kind of cruelty is this… cinema world is fast becoming the biggest underworld… that is what we understand from all these allegations.”
She added generally women in the film industry believe that the caravan is safer and if they also get such facilities as men, they can be safer in the shooting locations. But, the latest charge has proved it to be wrong.
It is pertinent to note that the publication of the Justice K Hema Committee report on sexual misconduct and abuse in the Malayalam film industry has opened a can of worms. Several actresses have come forward with disturbing accounts of the mistreatment they faced at the hands of their various male counterparts in the Kerala film industry. Meanwhile, around 17 cases have also been filed after the release of Hema Committee report.
Furthermore, the Association of Malayalam Movies Artistes (AMMA) also resigned on 27th August along with its president popular actor Mohanlal, and the other 17 members of the executive committee including Siddique and Edavela Babu.
