THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Feminists, scholars and Althea Women’s Collective have asked the state government to create a set of guidelines for the Malayalam film industry in consultation with the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) and other bodies.
KB Valsala Kumari, one of the Hema Committee members, said that certification must be implemented to ensure that nothing glorifies gender injustice has been portrayed and other suggestions.
Responding to this, the collective in a statement said it might provide vested interests with an excuse to further attack the recommendation of Hema Committee report as prudish censorship that devalues creativity.
The collective also called upon the need for a strong push for making intimacy coordinators. “They must work with directors to shape the content and oversee the filming of intimate scenes in ways that are respectful of the actors’ rights and ensure their security. The government should initiate, with the help of the members of the WCC, training in intimacy coordination in Malayalam cinema, and ensure a budget for intimacy coordination in movies which involve such scenes,” it said.
They have also demanded the government to provide training and workshops for aspiring and practicing creative professionals who seek to cultivate ideas regarding varying representations of gender and sexuality. It also urged the government to set up a gender-rating system for Malayalam film script, screenplays in conjunction with WCC to rate them.
The signatories include Deepti Komalam, Gayatri Devi, Darshana Mini Sreedhar, Bindu M Menon, Anamika Ajay, Divya GS, Mini Mohan, Magline Philomena, S Mini, PE Usha and J Devika.