Day after being accused of rape, senior Malayalam actor Siddique quits AMMA post

The actor, who had raised the allegations against Siddique, said she was ready for legal action provided the government gives her an assurance that she would be protected.

“If justice is assured, I am ready to go ahead with legal action against Siddique. I have evidence with me. He had made a similar approach to another person. I want an assurance from the government that it would protect my life and dreams,” she said.

She added that Siddique’s resignation as AMMA general secretary is nothing but drama. “It is an attempt to win some sympathy from the public. He should be banned from the film industry. He had attained the present stature in the industry after trampling over the dreams of many people like me. Several skilled professionals have been thrown out of the industry. There are several people still in the industry who are ready to give him an opportunity in cinema,” she said.

She also went onto accuse another professional in the industry, saying that he, too, had approached her seeking sexual favours. “A photographer had given my mobile number to him without my consent. One night, he had called me saying vulgar things. After some time, he even asked if I could ask my friends if I wasn’t personally interested in the offer,” she added.

On Saturday, raising the allegations, the young actor had said: “I had dreamed big when I came into the film sector. He invited me to a hotel room on the pretext of discussing a film project. I had only a professional approach. But I was trapped and he sexually abused me. It was rape… He slapped and kicked me. I had to run away from there. He is a number one criminal. Some of my friends too had similar experiences with him. I was kept away from the industry on account of this incident. He has a different face today. These people lie towards themselves. If he stands before a mirror, he can see a criminal.”

She said her friends had faced bad experiences from several high profile people in the industry. “We look forward to the Hema Committee report. What is important is the next step. We hope the government will give priority to this,’’ she said.

The allegations come up against the backdrop of the release of the Hema Committee report, which exposed rampant sexual abuse in the film industry. The report has stated that a culture of sexual harassment pervades the Malayalam film industry. The Committee reported the existence of casting couch (wherein powerful men demand sexual favours from women in return for opportunities in films), frequent suggestive and vulgar comments made by men at the workplace, and drunk male co-actors forcing themselves into rooms of women, among other things.

On Friday, Bengali actor Sreelekha put ace Malayalam film director and chairman of government-run Kerala Chalachitra Academy Ranjith on the dock accusing him of misbehaving with her in 2009.

Talking to the media, Sreelekha narrated an incident in connection with Ranjith’s film ‘Paleri Manikyam: Oru Pathirakolapathakathinte Katha’ in 2009.