Thiruvananthapuram: Malayalam actor Mohanlal welcomed the observations made by the Hema Commission on Saturday. He added that he never ran away from his responsibilities and has been with the Malayali audience for the past 47 years. Mohanlal addressed the media following the launch of the Kerala Cricket League at Hyatt Regency here.
"AMMA (Association of Malayalam Movie Artists) is not a trade union. It is like a family. It is unfortunate that the association is being hounded. We have done a lot of good work for its members. The state of affairs in our industry is better than other film industries," he said. The actor added that he was occupied with post-production work of his directorial debut, Barroz, and his wife's surgery in the past week.
"I have also given my statement to the Hema Commission twice in my capacity as an actor and producer. I welcome the observations of the committee. The culprits should definitely be brought before the law. That is the task of the police. We will cooperate in every way possible," the actor said. Mohanlal, who sidestepped many questions, also said that he was not part of any power group. He also appealed to the media to not target the Malayalam film industry as it was a source of livelihood for many people.
This was Mohanlal's first media interaction since the release of the Hema Commission report and his resignation as AMMA president. All members of the AMMA executive committee, including Mohanlal, had submitted their joint resignation last week following the sexual abuse allegations against some of its members.
The AMMA leadership initially had plans to hold an executive committee meeting to discuss the allegations of sexual abuse against the committee members. The meeting also hoped to select an ideal candidate as joint secretary to replace actor Siddique, who had stepped down from the post. However, the committee was in a quandary after joint secretary Baburaj began to face allegations of sexual abuse.
Allegations have also surfaced against actors Mukesh, Jayasurya, Edavela Babu and Maniyanpilla Raju. Cases have also been filed against directors Ranjith and Shrikumar Menon for their alleged misconduct. The Hema Commission report on the issues faced by women in the Malayalam film industry was made public on August 19, 2024, five years after it was submitted to the Kerala government.
