| Knives out: Hema committee report calls for stringent measures in the film industry It feels like déjà vu, and I couldn’t be sadder as I write this. I still remember the country’s collective shock as actor Tanushree Dutta kickstarted the #MeToo movement in India, after reporting how her co-star Nana Patekar had behaved inappropriately with her during a shoot. Out came tumbling the skeletons from the film industry’s closet, as multiple actors revealed their own unpleasant experiences. Cut to 2024, and another round of fresh allegations have begun to surface. The Hema Committee report has stunned the Malayalam film industry, and India, at that. The report, initially submitted by the three-member Justice Hema committee to the Kerala government in December 2019, has now been released with limited redactions. The report revealed that the issue of the casting couch, thought to be extinct, is still very much prevalent. It detailed how a 'power group' in the Malayalam film industry was actively engaging in casting couch practices, primarily targeting women actors and support staff. One had expected that the 2018 #MeToo movement would have led to a ripple effect for the betterment of all film industries. But add this to the already depressing state of affairs concerning women's safety, and the future looks bleak. Actor Mohanlal has resigned as the president of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA). A-list stars, who can otherwise be shy of speaking up on sensitive issues, have thankfully not kept mum. Prithviraj Sukumaran and Vikram are among the actors who have timely expressed their shock. The reactions come at a time when the country is already reeling from the horrific rape and murder of a doctor in Kolkata. In the Bengali film industry, too, over 100 women artists associated with the industry recently wrote to the state-run Tele Academy, seeking a safer workplace. So, the outrage is quite evident and collective. My only apprehension, every time something of this magnitude takes place, is that I do not want to return to a déjà vu. Art cannot thrive in an unsafe space, and the industry needs to place stringent measures to ensure safety for one and all. There is already a lot of taboo regarding women entering the entertainment industry, and reports like these can only add fuel to the fire. Imagine if somebody like Aishwarya Rai or Kajol never entered the industry because of safety concerns — the film industry cannot even fathom the loss. | 
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