Malayalam movies to sport 'violence against women punishable under law' warning

KOCHI: Brace up for yet another statutory warning in movies. This time for a much serious cause. Henceforth, any movie that depicts violence against women will have to carry the statutory warning: ‘Violence against women is punishable under the law.’

A directive in this regard was issued by the Kerala State Human Rights Commission to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) and the Cultural Affairs Department, the other day.

This will also be applicable to serials aired in various Malayalam television channels. The directive was issued by Kerala State Human Rights Commission acting chairperson P Mohandas, on a petition filed by Shefin Kowdiar. The petitioner contended that there should be a statutory warning, as scenes degrading women were on the rise in movies.

In the directive, the chairperson directed the regional officer of CBFC and the secretary of the Cultural Affairs Department to take necessary steps in that regard.

It said:”Include statutory scroll on “violence against women is punishable under the law” in the public exhibition of Malayalam feature films in theatres in Kerala and during the telecast of Malayalam serials in different channels.” Numerous movies are released and shown everyday, wherein women are subjected to all sorts of harassment.

The move will alleviate the grievance raised by the petitioner, which is of utmost public importance, the directive said. It also instructs the parties to comply with these recommendations within 30 days.
CBFC regional officer A Prathibha said the board would comply with the directives soon.

“We will take steps to include the statutory warning soon. Since atrocities against women are already punishable by law, we have no reason to not include the warning,” she said. However, it was upon the I&B ministry to decide on including the warning in TV serials, she said.

Meanwhile, the Women in Cinema Collective has welcomed the move. Beena Paul, editor and a member of the organisation, said though unfortunate, such a move should be welcomed.

“It is unfortunate that a warning in this regard has to go, but let’s see the positive side. If the message can be passed on to at least one person, the move has to be welcomed,” she said.