“The sky is full of mysteries, twinkling stars and beautiful moon. But, scientific investigation has shown that the stars do not twinkle and neither does the moon look beautiful,” begins the K. Hema Committee report, shedding negative light on the dark clouds hovering over the “outer glamour” of the Malayalam film industry.
The Committee has anguishedly recorded the heartbreaking stories of despair, not just from women, but also from men who are silenced in the industry.
One of the major recommendations of the committee to the state government is to enact a suitable law and constitute a tribunal to address all the problems faced by women in cinema.
There should be provisions in the law that will prohibit various illegal and objectionable acts committed by any individual against women in cinema and also punish the culprit.
The committee has recommended that a District Judge, preferably a woman with at least five years of experience on the trial side, should be appointed as the Tribunal. The decision of the Tribunal shall be final, subject only to revision before a division bench of the High Court.
The tribunal should have powers to seek assistance from experts in any field from within or outside the industry as well as to appoint any person as a commission to conduct inspection, make confidential inquiries or collect any relevant material.
All proceedings before the tribunal will be held ‘in camera’. The tribunal will be treated as a civil court and will not have the powers of a criminal court to try any suit. The tribunal can impose fines for cases of harassment or restriction.
The Hema Committee has also recommended that film production units must make arrangements for temporary toilet facilities as well as changing rooms using rings and thick curtains that can be temporarily fixed on any wall.
