In a complaint to the chief minister, Vinayan said that Ranjith had misused his position to influence the jury of the 2022 Kerala film awards.
Probe against Chalachitra Academy Chairman Ranjith over favouritism in Kerala Film Awards. (Supplied)
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday, 4 August, has asked the Department of Cultural Affairs to initiate an inquiry into director Vinayan’s complaint against Kerala Chalachitra Academy Chairperson Ranjith.
In a complaint submitted to the Chief Minister on Wednesday, 2 August, Vinayan said Ranjith misused his position to influence the jury of the 2022 Kerala State Film Awards.
Vinayan also submitted audio clips of two jury members — art director Nemom Pushparaj and singer Jency Gregory — as evidence. In the clips, the jury members told a media reporter, over a phone call, about Ranjith’s involvement in influencing the jury.
A week after the results of the Kerala State Film Awards were announced (on 21 July), Vinayan wrote a series of Facebook posts where he accused Ranjith of interfering in the selection process of films for awards.
The filmmaker accused that his period drama Pathonpatham Noottandu (2022) was termed as substandard and that Ranjith asked some jury members to remove the movie from the final list.
The Movement of Independent Cinema (MIC), a group of independent filmmakers and film enthusiasts in Kerala, also faulted Ranjith stating that he was not suitable to remain in the position of the Chalachitra Academy chair.
They alleged that Ranjith interfered in the award selection process last year too and favoured films that were rejected by the jury in preliminary rounds.
Interestingly, the Cultural Affairs Minister Saji Cheriyan gave a clean chit to Ranjith saying that he is an outstanding director.
He stated that Ranjith had no role in the award selection process. The Minister defined him as a “legend” and “gentleman”, and added that such responsibilities were done by the award jury chaired by Bengali filmmaker Goutam Ghose.
Following this, Vinayan wondered on what basis the Minister was supporting Ranjith.
Meanwhile, Goutam Ghose also supported Ranjith saying that there had been no external interference in the jury’s decisions and that the selection was free and fair.
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