Chairperson of the Karnataka State Commission for Women Nagalakshmi Choudhary along with producers at a meeting in Bengaluru on Monday. | Photo Credit: K. MURALI KUMAR The Karnataka State Commission for Women has directed the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) to constitute a Prevention of Sexual Harassment (PoSH) Committee within the chamber. The chamber has been given a 15-day deadline to respond.“The Supreme Court orders the establishment of a PoSH Committee in any workplace that has 10 or more women in it. It’s high time the Kannada film industry had one such committee for women to have the confidence to tackle sexual harassment,” said Nagalakshmi Chowdhary, chairperson of the commission.Ms. Chowdhary, along with members of the Film Industry For Rights and Equality (FIRE), led by filmmaker Kavitha Lankesh — an association formed in the wake of the #MeToo movement in 2018 — attended a meeting at the chamber on Monday (Sept. 16). They submitted a list of 17 demands concerning the working conditions of women in the industry.However, there was significant opposition to FIRE’s demand for a committee that could speak confidentially with female artists in the industry to compile a report on the challenges they face.N.M. Suresh, Chairman of KFCC, expressed skepticism about the productivity of such a committee, similar to the Hema Committee in the Malayalam film industry. “The chamber’s responsibility is to address the problems of the industry and provide appropriate solutions. Why do we need an additional committee? We encourage female artists to come forward and share their concerns with us. So far, neither the Women’s Commission nor the KFCC has received official complaints of sexual harassment from women in the industry,” Suresh stated.Kavitha Lankesh, President of FIRE, said, “If the industry’s leaders believe that there haven’t been enough women raising their voices for a healthier work environment, this research and the subsequent report will prove them wrong.”FIRE has already submitted a petition to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, requesting the formation of a committee headed by a retired judge to investigate the working conditions of women in the Kannada film industry, similar to the Hema Committee that exposed widespread sexual harassment in the Malayalam film industry. Published – September 16, 2024 10:05 pm IST