Kerala: FEFKA levels serious allegations against Hema committee report over 'bias' and 'exclusion'

The Film Employees Federation of Kerala (FEFKA) has criticized the Hema Committee report on issues faced by women in the film industry, alleging bias and exclusion. FEFKA accused the committee of only consulting the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) and ignoring other film organizations. 

Kochi: The Film Employees Federation of Kerala (FEFKA) has levelled serious allegation against the Hema Committee report, which probed issues faced by women in the film industry. FEFKA General Secretary B. Unnikrishnan accused the committee of preparing the report without consulting all relevant parties, leading to a biased and exclusionary document.

FEFKA criticized the committee for only engaging with the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) and excluding other film organizations. They questioned why a questionnaire was sent only to WCC members and why a group meeting was conducted with WCC alone.

FEFKA suggests that this indicates a deliberate "exclusion." The report predominantly discusses issues related to production executives, yet the Hema Committee did not engage with their union leader, which FEFKA finds puzzling.. They found the comments made about a WCC founding member unfair and felt that the report's approach to gender issues was flawed.

FEFKA demanded clarity on the "power groups" mentioned in the report and called for the names of the 15 individuals to be made public. They criticized the tendency to blame "power groups" for industry issues and urged an end to this practice.

Additionally, FEFKA opposed the Competition Commission law, calling it anti-people, and highlighted the need for a new call sheet system to address the long wait times faced by technical staff. "The current practice requires technical staff and directors to arrive at 6 AM, while actors only come at 11 AM, leading to long wait times for technical staff," it said.

The FEFKA's stance comes after their initial demand for the names mentioned in the Hema Committee report to be made public. Their criticism raises questions about the report's credibility and the need for a more inclusive approach to addressing issues in the film industry.