Chennai: Actor Rajinikanth on Sunday said that he was unaware of the Hema Committee and the report it released on the issues faced by women in the Malayalam film industry. Rajinikanth made these comments when several people, including actors, had started demanding a similar panel in Kollywood.
Media personnel met Rajinikanth at the Chennai International Airport and asked him about his upcoming movie Coolie, to which the actor smiled and replied. A reporter then sought his opinion about setting up a panel similar to Kerala's Hema committee in Tamil Nadu. The actor then said, "What? I am not aware of it, sorry."
Earlier in the day, Tamil actor Jiiva also engaged in a heated conversation with media personnel. When asked about the recent #MeToo allegations in the Mollywood and the Hema Committee report, Jiiva asserted that there were no issues with the Tamil industry, suggesting that problems were confined only to the Malayalam film field.
The Justice Hema committee was constituted by the Kerala government after the 2017 actress assault case, and its report disclosed instances of harassment and exploitation of women in the Malayalam cinema industry.
