Hema committee report should spur systemic changes in the film industry, says WCC member Bina Paul

The release of the Hema committee report on issues in the Malayalam film industry has kindled debates on what the State government’s response should be. In an interview to The Hindu on Wednesday, film editor and Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) member Bina Paul says that the focus should be on bringing in systemic changes in the industry to ensure that women can work with full confidence that they are respected as professionals.

The release of the Hema committee report on issues in the Malayalam film industry has kindled debates on what the State government’s response should be. In an interview to The Hindu on Wednesday, film editor and Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) member Bina Paul says that the focus should be on bringing in systemic changes in the industry to ensure that women can work with full confidence that they are respected as professionals.

“A lot of people have gone and deposed before the committee, after they were promised confidentiality. We really don’t know how many of them would want to take it forward legally. But, we don’t want to only stress on the instances of sexual harassment. There are many other issues related to film sets which we are hoping the government will take note of and act upon,” she says.

In March 2022, the WCC achieved a major victory when the Kerala High Court, in response to its plea, ordered that Internal Committee (IC) as per the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 be formed in film sets. Since the formation of the WCC in 2017 and the submission of the Hema committee report in 2019, things may have improved a bit in the sets, but much more needs to be done, feels Ms.Paul.

“Systems must be put in place to ensure proper contracts and facilities for everyone including technicians, junior artistes and dancers. Issues faced by women, for instance during menstruation time, are not even thought of during shooting. Regarding ICs, it could be true that they may not work properly at the moment because of power structures. There needs to be monitoring committees to see how effectively they are working,” she says.

The Hema committee report notes that a huge barrier exists for women, whose numbers are less in the technical side of cinema. In the K.R.Narayanan Film Institute, there were just two women out of 44 students in the technical departments in the years that the committee studied. The committee has recommended reservation and scholarships for women in film schools.

Ms.Paul, one of the earliest women technicians in Malayalam cinema, says that it was a bit scary in the early days being the only woman on the sets.

“Now, with this report, we don’t want it to be seen as a bad industry in which fewer women come into work. We need to have steps to build up trust in the industry. The moment the presence of women increases, there will be a huge difference. Even now, on a Malayalam film set, you will only see 2-3 women working in the technical departments, although the number of assistant directors have gone up. We need more women in cinema who know what their rights are,” she says.