‘I am not willing to be silent’: Filmmaker Asha Achy Joseph speaks out

Filmmaker Dr Asha Achy Joseph, who accused former MLA and movie director P T Kunju Muhammed of sexual harassment, speaks up.

I am Dr Asha Achy Joseph. I survived an act of sexual assault in the workplace. My dignity was not insulted in a dark alley or an isolated, dingy place. I was targeted while executing my official duties as part of the government-run Kerala State Chalachithra Academy, an institution that claims to uphold progressive values.

The Chairman of the Selection Committee of the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) 2025, P T Kunju Muhammed, sexually harassed me. A well-known filmmaker in Malayalam, he was formerly the MLA representing Guruvayoor in the State Legislative Assembly.

His act was not part of any misunderstanding, nor was it an aberration. It was a deliberate act by someone who knew the power of the office he occupied. Terms such as "victim" or "survivor" have been used against me. By branding me as a "victim" or "survivor", I feel, the society is deliberately attempting to erase my basic rights as an individual. I firmly believe that no woman should be silenced in the name of protection or safety.

The Chalachithra Academy invited me as a member to the selection committee for "Malayalam Cinema Innu" (Malayalam cinema today), as part of the 30th IFFK. The invitation was based on my experience and expertise.

I have been actively making documentaries and short films, besides being involved in the making of feature films for the past three decades. I have also won awards at the State and national levels, international scholarships, and worked as a teacher. I have headed the selection committee of the Chalachithra Academy-organised International Documentary & Short Film Festival of Kerala (IDFFK), and was a member of the research fellowship jury.

The latest movie I directed was "Palama: Do You See Me?", scripted by my students. Former student Jio Baby and friends supported me during the making of the film.

Coming back to the insulting incident, I required time to explain it to my partner, daughter and siblings. My daughter's response was a question: "Aren't you making a formal complaint?" I was anxious whether the bitter experience would end merely in a complaint.

I was depressed. Yet, I wrote a confidential letter, explaining the incident to the Chief Minister on November 24, 2025. Within four days, two women police officers visited my residence to record my statement. I was told that a First Information Report (FIR) would soon be filed.

Meanwhile, Academy officials contacted me over the phone. They expressed their shock and offered solidarity. There were several promises as well: the accused will be kept away from the IFFK, his name will be excluded from the festival book, a 'zero-tolerance' norm will be declared against sexual harassment in the film industry, etc.

Television news channels broke the news of the assault on December 8. Strangely, no FIR was still filed. Meanwhile, elections to local bodies were held, and so was IFFK. I doubt whether the expedited moves were a ploy to muffle my voice.

Following the incident, some people defined silence as safety. "Keep quiet for your own good," they advised. It was not the only advice: "Do not make things complex," "You will get protection," etc., followed. Hearing these advises, I felt as if my dignity was being violated once again.

I was insulted in the workplace nine years after a colleague of mine was assaulted on February 17, 2017, and the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), which also includes me, raised our voice.

If someone like me with relatively better circumstances could be targeted, I wonder what other women and the marginalised would be facing in their lives. Why is justice too far? What empowers patriarchy to sideline actors like Parvathy Thiruvoth, Padmapriya, Rima Kallingal, and many other not-so-popular women artists?

How fast does society's language change! "Harassment" becomes "controversy", "complaint" becomes "compromise", "survivor" becomes "circumstances"! I am not willing to be part of such erasures.

If the assault had not been reported, the accused would have taken up his next official assignment. If it was not reported, will the incident haunt him day and night? Speaking up is not easy. I opted to raise my voice after realising that the silence was yet another assault on me. Let me tell you something that no institution will remind you: You are not bound to be silent.

It is not my responsibility to submit evidence. It is up to the authorities to initiate steps to prevent such incidents in future, and to take legal action if such things ever happen. This is what the law also says regarding sexual harassment in the workplace: prevention, redressal, and addressing serious offences under criminal law. If the first two — prevention and redressal — are not possible, the third one becomes impossible.

The authorities ask what they should do. The answer is simple: Do your job. Do it for the sake of each woman working with you, not just for sensational cases that find media space. I have a word for those approaching me for a compromise. Please spare me from that insult.

I request the Kerala society that I need solidarity, not sympathy. Survivors need not be perfect. Society should extend solidarity based on righteousness. It should be understood that a woman speaks up in public only after finding all other doors closed.

I have questions for this State and its institutions. How did you allow such an incident to happen? Why was sexual harassment at work not prevented despite having a law? Why do you ask survivors to be silent while allowing the accused to continue in their official posts? Why do you view public statements as threats?

Protection does not mean forcing women into silence. Protection means taking up the responsibility to prevent, redress and address instances of sexual harassment. Protection means keeping the accused away from power. It also means ensuring safety mechanisms.

I refuse to be erased from history. Silence has never taken on patriarchy. Only courage and righteousness have ushered in change. I hope my words will encourage another woman to speak up tomorrow. I am speaking up to demand that those promising safety should take up the responsibility of ensuring it also.