Actor, director and Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) founding member Revathy Asha has posted a thinly veiled tweet addressing actor Mohanlal’s comment that the #MeToo movement is a “fad”.
The post, which does not refer to Mohanlal by name but addresses his comments quite directly, asks how we can bring some sensitivity to the minds of those who make statements like this, and quotes director and fellow WCC founding member Anjali Menon’s view that “those who come from Mars” (men) have no understanding of the experience of female abuse. Her post also puts the word ‘actor’ in capital letters, perhaps emphasising that the comment came from someone from the same film industry which has seen numerous women come forward with their stories of sexual harassment.
#MeToo movement a ‘FAD’ says a Renowned ACTOR. How do we bring some degree of sensitivity in such people? Like Anjali Menon says, the people who have just arrived from MARS have no clue what it means to get abused, what it takes to call out and how this can bring about change!!!
— Revathy Asha (@RevathyAsha) November 21, 2018
On Monday, Mohanlal, speaking at a press conference for a charity show to be held in Abu Dhabi on December 7, had said that #MeToo cannot be called a movement, and is only a fashion and a fad. When later questioned about his statements in an interview, he treated the issue still more flippantly, by giggling and trying to make a joke by saying that men “should also come out with ‘Me Too’”.
When asked about the #MeToo movement during the press conference, Mohanlal said, “Everyone knows everything that has happened. There is not much problem right now in Malayalam film industry. Just don’t say things and create problems. You cannot believe that #MeToo is a movement. It is a fad, it is changing into a fashion. Anything new, it will be alive for a few days. It can happen everywhere, not only in films, everywhere.”
Revathy was amongst the WCC members who, back on October 13, had called an explosive press conference to publicly state that they had no faith in the AMMA Executive Council due to their glaring inaction in the case of the abduction and assault of their colleague, and the various ways in which they had sided and supported Dileep, who is accused as a conspirator in the case, instead of the survivor.