BENGALURU: A week back, members of the Kannada film industry, led by Chetan and Sruthi Hariharan, had sent a letter to the secretary of AMMA (Association of Malayalam Movie Artists) secretary, Edavela Babu, expressing disappointment over the decision to bring actor Dileep back into the association. Now, Babu has responded to the letter, addressing Chetan, founder and secretary of Film Industry for Rights and Equality (FIRE).
In response Babu wrote, "Mr Dileep, Actor (the accused) was expelled hastily from AMMA on July 11, 2017, without much thought on the subject. Legal opinion thereafter was that the Executive Committee cannot unilaterally take such an action; moreover, as per the bylaws, even dismissal can be only after the member has been found guilty by a competent court in an offence.
Presently, Mr Dileep is only an accused and not a convict. Consequently, in the last AGM (on June 24 ), one of the members took this up and the full AGM decided to reinstate Mr Dileep. However, we take your letter in its true spirit, and respect its sentiments. This letter shall be placed in our next executive committee and duly attended to with utmost importance."
Talking to CE, Chetan says, "We're not here to debate AMMA's specificities or rules. What we are debating is that we feel there is special consideration and treatment being given to the accused. We feel like that artist organisations like the AMMA should work for the benefit for of actors. We're not saying he's guilty, that's for the law to decide, but this wasn't the appropriate time to reinstate the accused. It shows unabashed insensitivity towards the victim's struggles."
In a letter back to AMMA, the Kannada Film Industry (KFI) and FIRE wrote, "As conscientious industry representatives, we hold that any artists’ association by nature should extend support to the most vulnerable members of our industry rather than catering to those who may be in positions of power and influence. We hope that AMMA will prioritize the well-being of the victim, a long-time AMMA member, rather than reinstate an individual accused of heinous crimes."