Thiruvananthapuram: Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan has instructed the Culture Department to conduct a thorough investigation and furnish a report regarding the allegations made against filmmaker and Film Academy Chairman Ranjith, suggesting his interference in the State film awards decision-making process.
The action initiated by the CM only comes after director Vinayan had directly complained to the Chief Minister. Vinayan had earlier come forward and openly stated how Ranjith had intervened with the state film award jury’s decision to award films and raised the allegation of how he influenced and propagated the jury so that Vinayan’s film “Pathonpatham Noottandu” would not get awarded.
In connection with these allegations, the director also released audio messages of jury members Nemom Pushparaj and Jency Gregory speaking to Ranjith regarding the award decision. The conversations were also provided as evidence along with the complaint.
Earlier, Vinayan had criticised Minister Saji Cherian for exonerating Ranjith without initiating a preliminary investigation, following Pushparaj’s significant revelations.
Following the announcement of the 2022 Film Awards, serious allegations surfaced within the film industry regarding both the award jury and Chalachitra Academy Chairman Ranjith, with serious accusations of political bias levelled against the award selection process.
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