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Malayalam filmmaker and writer Ranjith Balakrishnan has been arrested by the Ernakulam Central Police following a sexual harassment complaint filed by a young woman actor. According to police, the complainant alleged that Ranjith behaved inappropriately on the set of a film currently under production.
Ranjith was taken into custody in Thodupuzha while attending an event. He was later brought to the Thodupuzha police station on the night of March 31, after being detained during his travel. The arrest procedures were carried out discreetly under the direction of the Idukki district police chief, reports said. He is expected to be handed over to the Ernakulam Central Police for further investigation.
He has been charged under Section 74 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which criminalises assault or the use of criminal force against a woman with the intent to outrage her modesty.
The police had earlier questioned him in connection with similar complaints, though those cases did not see significant progress.
In October 2025, the Kerala High Court quashed a sexual harassment case against Ranjith filed by a Bengali woman actor. In its October 27 order, the court cited the “significant delay” in filing the complaint.
The case had been registered on August 26, 2024, after the woman actor filed a police complaint against Ranjith for allegedly sexually harassing her in 2009. The complainant had spoken publicly about the incident after the release of the Hema Committee report, which detailed systemic issues faced by women in the Malayalam film industry. Ranjith, who was chairman of the Kerala Chalachitra Academy, resigned following the allegations.
A prominent filmmaker and writer, Ranjith has collaborated with superstars including Mohanlal, Mammootty and other actors. A scriptwriter for a long time, he made his directorial debut in 2001 with the Mohanlal-starrer Ravanaprabhu, a sequel to IV Sasi’s Devasuram.