SAME OLD STORY FOR WOMEN CREW IN CINE INDUSTRY

Last month, three makeup artists went on hunger strike seeking equal job opportunities and safety in workplace

- MANISHA V C S @Kochi

HE MORE things change, the more they remain the same! Despite year-long discussions on working conditions and the release of the ground-breaking Hema Committee report last August, the situation of women working behind the scenes in the Malayalam movie industry remains just about the same.

On January 29, three makeup artists, Rohini K S, Angel P and Elizabeth Seema, staged a hunger strike in front of the office of the All Kerala Cine Makeup and Hairstylist Union (AKCMHU) in Kochi. For a day and a half, the three protested against workplace exploitation and demanded equal job opportunities, basic needs and safety in the work environment.

AKCMHU and their umbrella union, the Film Employees Federation of Kerala (Fefka), met with protesting members on the second day and made promises that ended the strike. By this time, Angel was hospitalized, with her health condition weakening.

The demands they put up were simple, yet they had not been considered by unions until a public outcry following the hunger strike. The first was the abolishing of "slavery-like" conditions that exist within the industry.