The Kerala police have arrested Jithu Payyannur, a makeup artist in the Malayalam film industry, in connection with a sexual abuse complaint filed by a woman hairstylist. The Thrikkakara police had registered a First Information Report (FIR) against him on December 8, 2024, and booked him under section 354 (assault of a woman with the intention of outraging her modesty) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The alleged incident took place in 2021, and he was arrested on Friday, January 31.
Sexual abuse complaints from the film industry are currently being investigated by a Special Investigation Team (SIT), which was formed to probe cases registered following the release of a report by the Hema Committee, established to study the challenges faced by women in Malayalam cinema. On August 17, 2024, the redacted version of the report was published, following which several survivors openly spoke about the abuse they had suffered.
Earlier, the Kerala High Court directed the SIT to take action against the accused persons, provided the survivors consented to register the case. Subsequently, at least three makeup artists—Charuth Chandran, Saji Koratty, and Ratheesh Ambady—were booked in similar cases based on the depositions by other complainants.
Many women makeup artists and hairstylists who spoke with TNM in a previous conversation alleged that they are treated like second-class citizens, with no access to even basic facilities or security on film sets. Recently, three of them conducted a hunger strike in front of the All Kerala Cine Makeup Artists and Hair Stylists (AKCMH) Union, alleging that the union was protecting the perpetrators in sexual harassment cases. They ended the strike on the second day after the AKCMH, which is among the 21 unions affiliated with the Film Employees Federation of Kerala (FEFKA), the apex body for the welfare of professionals and technicians working at various levels of the Malayalam film industry, agreed to several of their demands.
Watch the video: Kerala make-up artists on hunger strike, say FEFKA power lobby targeting them