Scriptwriter accuses director VK Prakash of sexual abuse
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Ernakulam: A woman scriptwriter on Monday filed a complaint with the Director General of Police (DGP) alleging sexual abuse by Malayalam actor-director VK Prakash.
The woman, who did not disclose her identity, claimed that Prakash sexually assaulted her after inviting her to his room to discuss a film project on April 4, 2022.
The scriptwriter, a native of Kochi, said Prakash invited her to a hotel in Kollam and made unwanted advances, including attempting to kiss her and push her onto the bed. She further claimed that the director sent her Rs 10,000 as a bribe to keep the incident under wraps.
“Prakash contacted me through WhatsApp after I sent him a synopsis of my story. He then invited me to Kollam to discuss it further, despite my reluctance to travel. Upon arrival, I was taken to a hotel where Prakash had booked two rooms. He came to my room at night, asked me to narrate the story and offered me alcohol. He then made advances, including forcing me to act out an intimate scene, touching my shoulder and hands and attempting to kiss me,” she said.
"Once he realised I wasn’t interested, he left the room, and I returned to Kochi that night itself. After I got back, Prakash apologised via phone and offered me compensation, which I declined. He later sent Rs 10,000 through his assistant, asking me to stay silent about the incident. Since then, he has not contacted me,” she said.
The woman added that she decided to come forward with a complaint after seeing others starting to speak out about their experiences of abuse while working in the Malayalam film industry. “I left the industry due to that incident, but now feel confident that action will be taken on my complaint,” she said.
After the Justice Hema Commission, established by the Kerala government after the 2017 actress assault case, uncovered widespread harassment and exploitation of women in the Malayalam film industry many women have come forward to reveal the abused they faced.
The industry was further shaken on Sunday by the resignations of two high-profile figures. Director Ranjith stepped down as Chairman of the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy, and actor Siddique resigned as General Secretary of AMMA (Association of Malayalam Movie Artists). Bengali actor Sreelekha Mitra accused Ranjith of misconduct during the discussion of the film Paleri Manikyam, while junior artist Revathy Sampath reiterated her sexual assault allegations against Siddique, prompting his resignation.
On Monday, several other women actors came forward with sexual abuse allegations against senior actors Maniyanpilla Raju, Jayasurya, Baburaj, and actor-politician Mukesh.