Social media post on PM’s security breach in Punjab still causing ripples in Marathi TV

Marathi actor Kiran Mane put out a social media post on January 5 in which he wrote, “Even if there are two people in the audience, no performance is cancelled. We perform with as much passion as we would in front of a packed auditorium. Brother, we have guts in our chests.”

Coming as it did in the wake of the Prime Minister cancelling his rally in Ferozepur in Punjab, where media reports suggested chairs were put up for 70,000 people but only 700 turned up, it touched a raw nerve among Modi supporters. Many wrote to TV channel Star Pravah on its Facebook page demanding that Mane be thrown out of the ongoing serial Mulgi Zhali Ho.

The production House was quick to call Mane, asking him to stop reporting for the shooting. He was told that the leading actress in the serial, Sharvani Pillai, had accused him of unprofessional behaviour. Informally it was conveyed that his political posts on social media were causing problems.

The controversy shows no sign of abating even after an aggrieved Mane denied the charge against him; and four women acting in the serial spoke up in his favour and denied of any misbehaviour on the sets by Mane. The popular actor received support from his fans who took to social media and generated a Twitter storm with the hashtag #IStandWithKiranMane. The Sarpanch of the village in Satara, where part of the serial is being shot, wrote to the production house, reminding it of Maharashtra’s traditions and threatening that no more shooting would be allowed in the village. The row was settled after villagers distanced themselves from the letter, pointing out that they stood to lose financially and village youth would lose employment if the shooting stopped.

A defiant Mane has vowed to fight back, accusing the BJP and the RSS of trying to make an example out of him. It was a message to the industry, that “If you speak, you too will be given the same treatment”.

Mane’s fans point out that his posts were neither insulting nor disrespectful. They were thought provoking, leaving the reader to question and just like theatre, performing arts or the media, held a mirror to society.

“If this is the case then it is certainly breach of one’s fundamental rights. Any person who writes respectfully on any subject should be free to do so,” says leading producer Deepak Rajadhyaksha. Senior Marathi editor Pratap Asbe points out, “The hold of fascists on our society is increasing by the day. Nilu Phule and Dada Kondke could break the hold of fascists because they were strong actors. The new ones are scared. However, it is praiseworthy that four female co-stars have come out in support of Mane.”

The Marathi production house, Panorama Productions,is yet to write to Mane. They have not followed the Vishaka guidelines stipulated by the Supreme Court of India regarding sexual harassment at workplace and sent the complaint to the committee it is bound to have under the law. There is no clarity either about the nature and timing of the complaint made by Shravani Pillai. What has added to the controversy is the fact that Pillai’s husband, Unnikrishnan Pillai, is an office bearer in the Bharatiya Janata Party.

“I have not been told what is the complaint against me or given a chance to explain,” grumbles Mane. Political parties and the industry appear to have been quiet because of the complaint by Pillai, unwilling to get dragged into any controversy around personal, professional or sexual misconduct. When this journalist sent a message to Amit Deshmukh, the minister of cultural affairs, he replied rather diplomatically, “Will examine”.

However, Maharashtra Women’s Commission registered Mane’s wife’s complaint and has sought a response from the production house.

The four female co-stars claim Mane has never used even a single cuss word on the sets. “Bantering, arguing and even teasing and taunting each other is common on any set; but there is no way Mane has misbehaved with anyone at any time,” said Prajakta Kelkar. She is worried of the fallout on the industry and other actors. The viewers will be the losers, she warns.

Shweta Ambikar, another co-star, also frowns on tarnishing the actor’s reputation. “He has never behaved inappropriately. We all are together on the set and he has not abused anyone. He is a thorough professional and we were shocked after these allegations were made. It has not been easy for us to speak up, but at the end of the day, we wanted to be clear to our conscience,” she said, conceding that all four have risked their own career by sticking their neck out.

They are already feeling the heat in view of silence by industry veterans. “We do sense the tension on the set and we can feel the pressure as only four of us women have come out to speak the truth,” she admitted.

(This was first published in National Herald on Sunday)