The #MeToo wave in Kerala also shook the Bengali film industry. Women are coming forward to expose the ugly underbelly of the latter. There have been sexual harassment accusations against a few known personalities.

#MeToo allegations against Arindam Sil

An actress filed a complaint of sexual abuse, with the West Bengal Commission for Women against Arindam Sil, a prominent Bengali filmmaker. Following the complaint, on Saturday (September 7), he was suspended from the Directors Association of Eastern India (DAEI) for “an indefinite period” or till the time he is “cleared” of the allegations. Prior to that, on September 6, Arindam Sil appeared before the Women’s Commission and issued an apology.

In her complaint, the actress accused Sil of sexual misconduct on the set of a Bengali film. Further alleging the director, she claimed that the director asked her to sit on his lap and kissed her on the cheek while he was explaining a shot to her. The incident took place in April this year, the actress said.

For the unversed, the actress lodged the complaint with the West Bengal Commission for Women against Sil in July this year.

Based on the complaint, the Women Commission had held two hearings. The last meeting was on September 6, following which Sil issued an “earnest apology”.

On September 9, she filed an FIR against him at Bishnupur police station, South 24 Parganas.

What did the filmmaker said?

Sil, in his defense said it was unfair that the DAEI had not given him a chance to clarify.

He told Metro that he was explaining a shot in front of everyone on the set. ''Am I mad that I would put at stake the entire body of my work so far by mishandling a woman? I have always respected women and have talked about them in my films,'' said the 'Har Har Byomkesh' director.

“I was enacting a sequence during the shoot.... I asked her if she was comfortable doing such a scene. That is now being construed as me asking her how she felt about it. It’s sad,” he added.

Irony at its peak

What's surprising was Sil's audacity to participate in a ‘Reclaim the Night’ rally in Kolkata, protesting against the rape and murder of a junior doctor in Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital last month. The irony was the person who has been accused of sexual misconduct was seen demanding justice and supporting for women safety. Height of hypocrisy, isn't it?

The RG Kar Medical College protests coincided with Arindam Sil's Me Too controversy- leading to his suspension from DAEI.

It is to be noted that this is not the first #MeToo allegation against Arindam. In 2020, popular television actress Rupanjana Mitra, accused him of behaving inappropriately after calling her in his Kolkata office for the script reading of a popular daily soap, Bhumikanya. The latter had denied the allegations.

Joyjit Banerjee accused of sexual harassment

A model, recently, opened up about sexual harassment by actor Joyjit Banerjee. She shared screenshots of alleged conversations between her and the actor with Anandabazar Online. She claimed that Banerjee promised her film opportunities in exchange for a physical relationship.

The model also claimed that Joyjit promised to divorce his wife but he stopped responding to her when she asked him about it. She even shared that Joyjit’s wife was aware of what was happening but ignored it, and questioned her decision to be in a relationship with a married man.

Joyjit rubbished the allegations and denied knowing and talking to her on Messenger". He further said, “I am sending a message to that stranger through Anandabazar Online; I will meet you in court.”

Amidst the ongoing RG Kar Medical College protests and the Me Too movement in the Malayalam film industry, more women from the Bengali film industry are stepping forward, and sharing their harrowing experiences.

Actress Ena Saha is also one of them, who shared her experience of casting couch. Without taking name, the actress revealed that 10 years back, she was asked to “compromise” to get work by a producer. On her refusal, he dropped her off late at night on a deserted road in Rajarhat, Kolkata. To avoid such situations, she decided to start her own production company. Ena also said that the Bengali film industry can be toxic and also raised the important question why there is no discussion about the women who choose to compromise for work.

#MeToo allegations in the past

Earlier, in 2018, during Bollywood's MeToo movement, actress Annesha Paul filed a complaint against director Premangshu Roy. She shared her horrific experience with him. Paul alleged that she was sexually assualted and asked to perform scenes they were not in the script. When she protested, Roy threatened to ruin her career. Annesha even revealed that she didn't receive any help when she complained about the incident to the directors and producers' guild.

Asur director Pavel was also dragged in a #MeToo case by Anurupa Chakraborty who accused him of sexual harassment and misconduct in February 2018. The incident happened in 2016 according to the actress. She wrote a lengthy post on Facebook, where she alleged that Pavel hugged and kissed her without consent. The director had denied the allegation levelled against him.

Renowned filmmaker Srijit Mukherji's name also cropped up. He was dragged into the controversy when a social media user claimed that one of his female friends had offered to assist Srijit in a film and he ‘commented on how she looked.’

Mukerji took to his Facebook page to issue a clarification. “It is rather unfortunate that her side of the story had to be discussed in a defamatory post,” he wrote.

Demand for safer workplaces

After the Hema Committee report, Ritabhari Chakraborty found similarity to several instances that she and her peers have experienced. The actress, in a lengthy Facebook post, requested her fellow actresses to stand against the 'monsters' and call out the 'predators' of the Bengali film industry. "The hero/producer/directors with such filthy mind and behavior continue to work without facing any consequences of their actions and even seen holding candles for the RG Kar victim as if they think of women as anything better than flesh,'' she added.

On August 27, over a hundred female artists from the Bengali film industry wrote a letter to the state-run Tele Academy demanding a safer workplace for women in the Bengali film, web platform and television industry.

Swastika Mukherjee, Bidipta Chakraborty, Paoli Dam, Roopa Ganguly, Sohini Sengupta, Anuradha Ray, Sohini Sarkar, Chaitali Dasgupta, and Shakuntala Barua, and scriptwriter Meghatithi Banerjee were among the signatories of the letter, which was also sent to the Eastern India Motion Picture Association and West Bengal Motion Picture Artistes Forum.

The letter from the Women's Forum for Screen Workers mentioned that women face ''various kinds of sexual abuse every day'' and also highlighted the absence of ''effective support system in place to prevent, prohibit, or address sexual harassment''.

The letter also stated that there is a ''significant gap in information, access, and advocacy regarding occupational safety, health, favourable working conditions, and the social security guaranteed to all workers under labour laws''.

"We know that it is the responsibility of the employers in all sectors to ensure the dignity and safety of workers in their workplaces; we state firmly that the television, web platform, and film industry should be no exception," it concluded.

Recently, Ritabhari, on her Instagram handle shared that a committee has been formed in West Bengal by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to investigate sexual harassment cases in the Bengali film industry. ''An unbiased committee of 5, headed by a former justice was formed consisting of women of different designation from doctor to Lawyer who will investigate the sexual harrasment practices in Bengali Film Industry and create a report. First step towards unmaking the predators,'' she wrote.

The #MeToo movement in the Bengali film industry has ignited a new wave of scrutiny and sparked a wider conversation about misogyny, exploitation and power dynamics.