KOCHI: “Each time a woman stands up for herself, she stands up for all the women.”
The quote from the legendary poet Maya Angelou came true in Kerala with the inception of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC). The beginning of it all was in 2017 when a prominent actor was abducted at night and subjected to horrific sexual assault in Kochi.
At the centre of it all was fear. When women artists in the industry woke up to the gruesome news, what held them all together was just this emotion. From there started a movement that shook the bastion of patriarchy, which has been ruling the Malayalam film industry for ages.
“It was the formation of a sisterhood,” explains actor-director Geethu Mohandas about the initial days, when 18 women from the industry united to support the survivor. “I called Rima and Parvathy, and it extended from there. First, we created a WhatsApp group where we just spoke about it all. Soon, we gained clarity. When Asha Achy Joseph, Sajitha Madathil, and Deedi Damodaran joined, they educated us more about the system,” Geethu recalls the initial days on that WhatsApp group.
The women always felt that a movement means a significant failure is possible and they might also lose their livelihoods.
“We knew people would tarnish our image. But deep inside, there was this realisation — we would be remembered as the pioneers of this movement,” Geethu smiles.
Three months later, the women artists met up with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and presented a memorandum, which called for a committee to address gender disparity and employment conditions in Malayalam cinema.
“Workings within the industry was very opaque. No one knows its mechanism and this necessitated a study by the government, a fact-finding mission, if you may,” explains Bina Paul, film editor, former artistic director of IFFK and member of WCC. Thus, the Justice Hema Committee on July 14, 2017.
However, the formal registration of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) Foundation as an official organisation happened later. On November 1, 2017, the collective registered as a society. But things were not easy. The years followed were filled with various challenges, especially cyber attacks for calling out the injustices in the Malayalam film industry. And many altogether disappeared from the screen.
As a director, Geethu says, she held a position of power — I created my work, so nobody could interfere with my career. “But that wasn’t the case for actors. They attacked the women, and many were affected in their careers. We needed to remind people why we started this fight. Now that so many women are coming forward, we’re making history,” says Geethu.
“But there was a sense of camaraderie among us,” recalls Bina. “We were scared, yes, but we knew we had to support the survivor. The support from the industry included posts like ‘Avalkoppam’, but she was not getting any work. The stand taken by AMMA also left much to be desired,” Bina explains.
When AMMA decided to reinstate an alleged accused as a key member, WCC condemned the action and three WCC members — Geethu Mohandas, Remya Nambissan, and Rima Kallingal — resigned along with the survivor, publicly citing their reasons. In October 2018, the collective held its first press conference, where the members revealed their experiences within AMMA and the oppressive values that they had been subjected to.
Five- years wait to publish Hema Committee report
By December 2019, the Hema Committee after many interviews with artists in the industry submitted its report to the government. Five years of long wait followed, where WCC members went through a harsh time.
But they didn’t want just to spend years in wait. They started their own research, workshops, planning and setting guidelines for a better work environment. They held a conclave of all women artists and technicians in south India and formulated the project Shift Focus.
And fast-forward to 2024, as the report is not out, though partially, the members feel a sense of vindication.
“But the goal was to change the system, not to tarnish any other organisations,” explains Deedi Damodaran. “And when the system changed, these organisations had to step down.” Now, WCC is not done, nor are they feeling like they have won. “This was just the first step, now, we have a long road ahead,” smiles Bina.
