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Minutes after actor Dileep was acquitted on December 8 in the 2017 sexual assault case of a prominent woman actor, support for him emerged from within the Malayalam film industry.
Dileep, the eighth accused, was acquitted by the Additional Special Sessions Court (SPE/CBI – III), Ernakulam.
Some of Dileep’s defenders are long-time associates or supporters who have stood by him through the eight years that the survivor has been waiting for justice.
Among them is actor-filmmaker Nadirsha, Dileep’s close friend and long-time associate, who had faced intense questioning early in the investigation. Nadirsha’s name appeared in the statements of prime accused Pulsar Suni, who has been convicted, as well as those of a few other witnesses.
After Dileep’s acquittal, Nadirsha shared a photograph of the two of them in a celebratory post and wrote, “Thank god. Truth alone triumphs.”
In a similar post, film producer and director East Coast Vijayan, who has worked with Dileep in the past, shared a photograph of the actor and wrote, “God is great.” Vijayan, known for his music albums, has also been openly supportive of Dileep, posting pictures with the actor and sharing updates about Dileep’s films.
Deepa Rahul Easwar, television personality and wife of men’s rights activist Rahul Easwar, posted on behalf of her husband, captioned “Truth shall prevail”, and shared a photo of Rahul and Dileep smiling cheerfully. Rahul has been recently arrested and sent to judicial custody in a case of cyber harassment for disclosing the identity of a rape survivor.
Actor Lakshmi Priya said that she was happy that the verdict was what she had hoped for. “Both [the survivor and Dileep] are our colleagues and friends but I have always believed that he would never do such a thing. It is not that I am not with the survivor. We should respect the court's verdict,” she said. The actor has been vocal about her support for Dileep before too.
One of Dileep’s biggest supporters, producer Saji Nanthyattu, claimed that he was offered Rs 5 lakh by the police to stop coming for discussions on news channels about the case. He also claimed that it was very easy to frame a person in a false case.
Saji had infamously made a controversial statement in June 2017 that the survivor “was only harassed for 2.5 months but Dileep had been harassed for four months” since the assault took place.
Support also came from filmmaker Arun Gopy, who has made two of Dileep’s movies since 2017 – Ramaleela (2017) and Bandra (2023). After a cryptic post in the morning about the “expectations of new mornings”, he shared a photo of himself taking a piece of cake from Dileep, apparently in a celebration of his acquittal.
Kerala Film Producers’ Association vice president Suresh Kumar said the verdict vindicated what he believed since first visiting Dileep in jail seven years ago.
“This was a conspiracy targeting Dileep hatched by the police and several film industry insiders. Have they been able to show a single piece of evidence? A superstar at the height of his career was harassed by the public and the police,” Suresh said.
Claiming that the public also “played a part”, he demanded accountability for what he described as “troubles and trauma” faced by Dileep and his family. Suresh added that the acquittal was a “great relief for the film industry” and insisted that the government answer for how the case was handled. “Dileep is like a brother to me,” he said. “I have been saying that he is not guilty since the very beginning.”
Read our detailed coverage of the Kerala actor assault case over the years here.