Exclusive/ No Calls for Boycott Yet, Mollywood Box Office Safe From #MeToo Storm: Trade Experts

Malayalam Box Office: The findings of the Hema Committee Report have jolted the Mollywood. The redacted 235-page document details shocking accounts of systematic sexual abuse and discrimination that women professionals face in Mollywood. While there is significant outrage over the scandal on social media and a call to take onus, Malayalam trade experts are of the opinion that there will be no spillover of this controversy into the business aspect.

Amid the heat that the Malayalam film industry stakeholders are facing, new releases such as Tovino Thomas starrer Ajayante Randam Moshanam, Asif Ali’s Kishkindha Kaandam and Kondal starring Antony Varghese Pepe are all set to hit the big screen on September 6, coinciding with the Onam holiday.

According to trade experts, the #MeToo movement will have little to no impact on the box office performance of the films. In an exclusive conversation with Republic, insiders and industry experts shared their insights on the potential impact of the brewing #MeToo row on the film business during the coming holiday period. 

Onam releases safe despite #MeToo wave

In the aftermath of the publication of the Hema Committee Report, Mukesh, Siddique, Ranjith and Jayasurya are some of the few well-known faces in Mollywood who have been accused of perpetrating sexual crimes. For many, this should have been enough to place checks in the industry. However, it might take more.

Talking about the ground reality, trade expert Ramesh Bala said, “Nothing has changed" so far. He argued that the names that have come up in this scandal so far are not "big" enough for people to pay attention. He maintained that upcoming releases have no one in the cast and crew who stands accused so far.

"If you look at it, Ranjith and Siddique are both side-character artists. No other big hero has been named yet. On the occasion of Onam, Tovino Thomas' movie is coming out and his name has not come up in controversy yet," Bala shared. 

Trade expert Sridhar Pillai echoed a similar sentiment. He shared that the conversation around the Malayalam film industry being allegedly unsafe for women, will have no impact on the box office. He asserted that given the Onam festivities, people would want to catch the new releases in theatres. He also shared that Tovino Thomas' movie Ajayante Randam Moshanam (ARM) will most likely remain unaffected.

'Too early to gauge the impact of #MeToo movement'

Popular industry tracker Manobala believes that no matter the magnitude of the #MeToo movement, the common public will flock to the theatres. He shared, "To a common public watching movies and protesting for injustices is two different things. No matter how much they raise their voice, at the end of the day, they will go to cinema halls with their families for entertainment." 

Bala cited the example of actor Dileep who was accused of sexual assault (in 2017), arrested but returned to acting soon after. "If you look at Dileep, he was arrested in a sexual assault case, but after some time he started acting, and his movies got released. The theatrical success was going on even when the court case was pending. It is too early to say if it (#MeToo) will affect the box office performance." "Something bigger has to happen, some big superstar needs to be named for box office impact. Right now it is limited to tier 2, side actors," Bala concluded.