HIV/AIDS within the film industry

[Guest guest]

Dear FORUM,

SFDRT has been implementing a prestigious program of HIV/AIDS prevention and

care with the Vernacular Film Industry in Chennai, Tamnilnadu for the last three

years. We have thereby been privileged to involve some of the famous celebrities

into our regular programs. How ever we have been working mainly with the

technicians who go into the silent achievers of producing a full-fledged movie.

Amidst them in the last two years we have been contacted by 14

persons living with HIV/AIDS. We have also identified the areas of extreme

exploitation and violence among the additional cine stars and dancers who are

very young as young as 14, 15, and 16 years.

Girl children as young as 9 years are involved in the movie acting, which has a

large tendency to be trafficked into the sex trade within the industry.

We also have documented case studies of those who have been exploited to

identify themselves as cinema celebrities and are now finding it very difficult

to come out of the situations.

Recently there has been a major outbreak of issues related to sex and sexuality,

which can be depicted in different forms, within the film industry.

Director Thagabachan has been quoted by the vernacular media that “all women

within the film industry are prostitutes” , which was agitated by the forum for

the cine artistes headed by Mr. Vijaykanth, yet another leading actor. Leading

artists like Manorama, Sripirya, Radhika and Kushboo etc. were refusing to even

pardon the said director.

There was an attempt for a strike by all the actors and actresses of the film

industry. While this was going on perhaps the media took the opportunity do up a

research on sex and sexuality and asked the opinions of the leading artists like

Kushboo, who stated that “ I am sure all educated men in India would not wish or

believe that their wives were virgins before marriage. Pre marital sex is very

common among the women and men and only we need to be extremely careful in

taking care of ourselves by not getting infected with HIV and passing the

infection to the wife, children etc.”

How ever this statement and the inner feelings were politicized by

some of the politicians and their parties in Chennai and other parts of

Tamilnadu and now Kushboo has 5 cases of defamation that are pending against her

and which she needs to face.

A place in Madurai, people have built a temple in her name and the same people

have raised strong objections to her statements.

Women and others boycotted and carried slippers and brooms to her house and in

front of the forum premises for the cine artistes.

Although the forum gave a representation that they had nothing to do with the

personal statements of the artist, how ever the people and especially the women

of Tamilnadu felt a strong agitation amidst them and felt that they would be

personally affected within their family relationships. Kushboo was one of the

prime artist who has also encumbered the vernacular channels especially Jaya TV

which is owned by the Chief Minister and her allies of Tamilnadu.

Further Kushboo has been made to apologize to the general public through the

Jaya TV channel for the statement that she has made and for her own private

feelings that she has expressed.

Media needs to be still sensitized and hold more responsible to highlight issues

related to sex and sexuality;

We think that sex and sexuality is still a hidden mater in India especially in a

very high prevalent state like Tamilnadu and will that contribute to the

increase or decrease of the current trend of HIV infections?

Probably the communication to openness of sex and sexuality to a large mass

should be boldly attempted.

The head of the Film employees federation of southern India (FEFSI), namely

Vijayan who is also associated with stunt in the films, radically denies to talk

about sex and sexuality and is quite against working with HIV/AIDS prevention.

This probably proves that there are strong feelings and emotions among sex and

sexuality, exploitation, violence against women and HIV/AIDS within the film

industry that probably NACO could take up as special populations to work with in

the coming years.

I would be interested in receiving effective feedback.

Regards

Shyamala Ashok

sfdrt

E-mail: aabinand@...