Mollywood row explained: Why Shwetha Menon is still AMMA president, and what the court order says

The Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) is in the middle of one of the biggest leadership crises in its 32-year history. What began as the resignation of the executive committee has snowballed into court battles, competing claims over who should run the organisation, and public sparring among its members

The latest flashpoint came on Saturday, when AMMA members Ansiba Hassan, Maala Parvathy and Usha Haseena defended the now-stayed ad hoc committee and argued that the executive committee led by Shwetha Menon had lost its legitimacy. According to them, the turning point was the general body's refusal to approve the executive committee's financial accounts. Ansiba argued that once the accounts were rejected, the committee could no longer continue in office or function as an interim body.

She also dismissed comparisons with the previous executive committee led by Mohanlal. While that committee continued in a caretaker role until fresh elections were held, Ansiba said the circumstances were entirely different because Mohanlal's committee had not faced internal disputes or objections over its accounts.

Shwetha Menon, however, has taken a completely different stand.

Responding through a social media post after the press conference, she said the Ernakulam Munsiff Court had prevented attempts by certain individuals to "hijack" AMMA by taking advantage of the ongoing dispute. She maintained that the organisation's leadership should be decided only through elections, not by what she described as attempts to enter "through the back door".

Her remarks followed the court's July 3 order staying the functioning of the ad hoc committee headed by Ramesh Pisharody. The court observed that AMMA's bylaws contain no provision for the formation of an ad hoc committee. It also noted that when the previous committee led by Mohanlal resigned, it continued to administer the association until a new committee was elected. On that basis, the court allowed Shwetha Menon and the existing executive committee to continue administering AMMA and restrained the ad hoc committee from interfering.

Following the order, Pisharody resigned as convenor, saying he had no intention of holding on to the position or dragging the organisation into further legal disputes.

The ad hoc committee itself was formed immediately after the executive committee announced its resignation at AMMA's annual general body meeting. However, the controversy took another turn nearly two weeks later when it emerged that neither Shwetha Menon nor the executive committee had officially submitted resignation letters. Pisharody subsequently claimed that AMMA had not received any formal resignations through its official email ID.

The leadership dispute has since widened into a larger crisis, triggering legal proceedings, public exchanges and resignations by members, including Joy Mathew and Jayan Cherthala. While Mohanlal attended the general body meeting, neither he nor Mammootty has publicly commented on the developments.