Chinmayi Sripada Asks Why Karthik, Named In #MeToo, Is Part Of Mani Ratnam’s Navarasa On Netflix

Chinmayi Sripada Asks Why Karthik, Named In #MeToo, Is Part Of Mani Ratnam’s Navarasa On Netflix

Let me ask you this. Do you think the #MeToo movement has been a success in India? Because other than temporary empowerment, I don’t really see any actual punishment or penitence from the men who were accused during the wave in India. Like, you see Harvey Weinstein embroiled in a legal battle. We don’t see any famous name from the Indian movie industry fighting a similar battle and women finding justice they deserve, do we? A singer Chinmayi Sripada recently pointed out when the cast and crew list for Mani Ratnam’s anthology film Navarasa was released by Netflix, while the men, like composer Karthik, named in #MeToo keep working unfazed, the women continue to suffer.

 

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Enna boss sollureenga? Honestly, we are starstruck? 9 emotions, 9 stories, 1 epic anthology. #Navarasa coming soon. @thearvindswami @bejoynambiar @gauthamvasudevmenon @halithashameem @karthicknaren_m @ksubbaraj @ponramVVS @rrathindran @aishwaryarajessh @AshokSelvan @gauthamramkarthik @nithyamenen @par_vathy @joinprakashraj @prasanna_actor @revathyasha @worldofsiddharth @actorsuriya @actorvijaysethupathi @arrahman @immancomposer @ghibranofficial @karthikmusicexp @jayendrapov @madrastalkies

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On Wednesday morning, Netflix dropped the news about Navarasa, an anthology film of nine stories, to be co-produced by Mani Ratnam and Jayendra Panchapakesan. The film boasts of a major ensemble cast, including Revathy, Parvathy, Nithya Menen, Aishwarya Rajessh, Arvind Swami, Suriya, Siddharth, Vijay Setupathy, Prakash Raj. On its list of directors, it includes Bejoy Nambiar, Gautham Vasudev Menon, Karthik Subbaraj and more. As for composers, they’ve got A.R. Rahman, Justin Prabhakaran, Govind Vasantha and Karthik, amongst others. Truly, that’s one huge crew. But that last name has managed to piss some people off, including singer Chinmayi Sripadi. She wonders why a Karthik, a composer named in #MeToo, gets to work with such an illustrious team despite the allegations against him.

 

 

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Chinmayi tweeted about Karthik when the Navarasa news dropped and people began wondering why he was on the list. The singer has previously exposed and continues to talk about the sexual harassment allegations against lyricist Vairamuthu, which have earned her a lot of negative publicity when it comes to his supporters. She claims that Karthik too, has the same kind of support that Vairamuthu does, and hence it is futile to expect much from the industry. She has also been vocal about how, while the men accused in #MeToo continue to swim in new work and opportunities, she has been snubbed for work and even banned in certain segments from getting new work because she spoke about Vairamuthu and actor Radha Ravi.

 

Also Read: Singer Chinmayi Shares The 17th #MeToo Story Against Lyricist Vairamuthu. Why Is No Action Being Taken?

She wasn’t the only one who raised her doubts about Karthik getting work in such prominent projects.

While we can be glad that the #MeToo movement arrived in India, giving many women a platform to raise their voice, there’s this pinch that it didn’t have the desired effect that it should’ve had. Particularly in the industries that are riddled with predators. The Indian movie industry has lately had a lot of skeletons tumbling out of its closet. But while lighting one up or excessive partying might be on their individual conscience, allegations of sexual harassment and rape are not something to be taken lightly. In Bollywood, we’ve seen plenty of instances where men named during the #MeToo wave have returned to work as if nothing happened. Queen director Vikas Bahl apparently worked on a web series. Alok Nath got cast in a De De Pyaar De. And not much is being said by fellow industry insiders about Sajid Khan.

Should we stop expecting any accountability from the industry, then?

Also Read: Actress Aahana Kumra Says The #MeToo Movement Diluted Very Fast In Our Industry. We Couldn’t Agree More

Jinal Bhatt

A Barbie girl with Oppenheimer humour. Sharp-tongue feminist and pop culture nerd with opinions on movies, shows, books, patriarchy, your boyfriend, everything.

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