'Her scenes edited out, plaint followed dissent over creative decisions during shoot': Director Ranjith's counsel on sexual abuse case

Disagreements between filmmaker Ranjith and the complainant during the course of a film shoot spiralled into a sexual harassment case, according to the director's bail plea. The defence has cited issues related to creative decisions during the shoot, which eventually led to a case of sexual abuse against the director. According to advocate Mohammad Siyad, Ranjith's counsel, these differences led to certain scenes featuring the complainant being edited out, a decision he said was taken jointly by the director and the producers.

Siyad has outlined the defence’s position while also addressing questions over his own role in the matter. Siyad had been serving as an external member of the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) but stepped down before taking up the case. He said the decision to resign was taken out of propriety, given his professional and personal associations.

“The producer of the film, Premachandran, has been my client for many years. Co-producer Subair is also my client, and I am generally their legal advisor,” Siyad said. He added that no complaint had been registered with the ICC at any point during the film’s production. “This is a film where shooting had already been completed, and until then, no complaint came from the survivor or anyone else,” he said.

Siyad further stated that he is closely associated with Ranjith’s family and took up the case at their request. He maintained that he had acted fairly in stepping down from the ICC before representing the filmmaker. “If I had continued in the ICC and either party had approached it and I had taken a stand, I would not have been able to represent either the accused or the survivor,” he said, adding that his resignation was accepted after he formally communicated it.

Presenting the defence’s version of events, Siyad claimed that Ranjith had, from the outset, raised concerns about a possible conspiracy behind the case. He pointed to disagreements between the director and the complainant during the shoot, particularly regarding her performance. According to him, Ranjith was not satisfied with her work, which led to the decision to remove some of her scenes from the final cut.

The advocate also questioned the circumstances described in the complaint. Referring to the alleged incident said to have taken place inside a caravan, Siyad said the film set had a large number of people present at the time. “There were at least 200 people on set,” he said. 

Siyad added that Ranjith, who has recently undergone spine surgery and has ongoing health issues, did not spend time inside the caravan. “He is someone with severe health issues and did not even have the time to sit inside,” he claimed.

Addressing the timeline of the complaint, Siyad noted that the case was registered nearly two months after the alleged incident. He said there had been no clear explanation for the delay. While the complainant had cited treatment as a reason, the advocate said he had spoken to several people who were present on set, and they had indicated that the complainant appeared to have left the location in a positive frame of mind. “If such an incident had happened, from what I have heard, she is not someone who would keep it a secret,” he said, while clarifying that he does not know the complainant personally.

Siyad also said he became aware of the case only on Tuesday night, around the time Ranjith was taken into custody. “There was no prior discussion. The case was kept as a secret,” he said, reiterating that no complaint had been raised through internal mechanisms during the production phase. He added that the subsequent public discussion around his resignation from the ICC was unwarranted, maintaining that he had handled the situation appropriately.

Meanwhile, Ranjith has been remanded to 14 days in judicial custody and is currently lodged in the Ernakulam sub jail after completing medical formalities. He was earlier admitted to Ernakulam General Hospital, citing health concerns, before being produced before a magistrate in Thrippunithura.

The filmmaker was taken into custody on Tuesday night from near Muttam in Idukki district and later handed over to Kochi City Police, where his arrest was formally recorded at the North Women’s Police Station. Briefly responding to reporters, he denied the allegations, saying the case would be proven false.

The investigation is ongoing, with further legal proceedings expected in the coming days.