Thrissur: Dancer, activist, and Kerala Kalamandalam Chancellor Mallika Sarabhai has voiced concern over being informally advised against publicly supporting the protesting ASHA workers, calling it her “first taste” of the limitations placed on university heads.

In a Facebook post shared late Wednesday, Sarabhai wrote, “Today, I got my first taste of what it means to be the Chancellor of a University. Restricted speech. I was asked for my opinion and gave it as me, as I have done all my life. Oh, not allowed any more. Hmmm. How do I stop being me? Do I even want to?”

The protest, led by the Kerala ASHA Workers’ Association (KAHWA), began on February 10 with a sit-in outside the secretariat. Their key demands include the release of pending payments, an increase in the monthly honorarium from ₹7,000 to ₹21,000, and retirement benefits of ₹5 lakh. With the protest entering its 81st day on Thursday, the ASHAs are set to launch a day-and-night march from Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram on May 5. 

In a show of solidarity, civil society members in Thrissur, under the leadership of writer Sarah Joseph, have launched an initiative urging supporters to donate ₹1,000 directly to protesting ASHA workers. Sarabhai contributed to the campaign by transferring ₹1,000 to an ASHA worker named Ancy.

Speaking to Onmanorama, Sarabhai clarified that no official gag order had come from the government, but that multiple people associated with the university had questioned the “appropriateness” of her statement.

“There are many layers of people I work with as Chancellor. Several questioned the appropriateness. I was very surprised, as I have never worn a hat that puts me in a position to not say what I want,” she said.

Having worked with ASHA workers in Jharkhand as well, Sarabhai added, “What is paid to them is simply wrong.”