The Film Industry for Rights and Equality (FIRE) in Bengaluru has recently reached out to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, requesting the establishment of a committee to investigate any instances of sexual harassment within the Kannada film industry. This move follows the release of the Hema Committee report, which revealed significant systemic injustice faced by women in the Malayalam film industry. FIRE’s appeal reflects growing concerns about the treatment of women in the film industry and aims to address these issues in Kannada cinema as well. A meeting was also held on September 16 regarding the formation of a committee in the Kannada film industry. Actress and singer Chaithra J Achar is one of several celebrities who are in favour of a similar committee in Karnataka.
Chaithra J Achar has acknowledged that she has herself not been subjected to sexual harrasment, she recounted that a junior artist once spoke about her ordeal. Chaithra said that right during the shooting of her second film, a junior artist opened up to her. She said the junior artist was selected for the first round of auditions and was then asked to go on a trip with the casting team in order to bag the role.
“It cannot be said that there is no sexual exploitation in the film industry. Saying that there is no exploitation is like saying that there is no theft in the world,” Chaithra said. She also said that forming a committee akin to Hema Committee will benefit many actresses who can bring their ordeals to the notice of the committee.
Sumalatha Ambareesh was also in favour of forming a committee. At an event where a bronze statue of Dr Ambareesh was inaugurated, she said that while she was supporting the formation of the committee, it should not be misused by artists. She also said that having worked across different film industries including all South languages as well as Hindi, she never experienced harassment of any sort.
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