#MeToo Movement: MAMI Director Says She Dropped Films As Standing With Victims Was More Important

The 20th edition of Jio MAMI Mumbai festival with Star has come under the scanner for dropping a few couples of films from its lineup as they are backed by men, who has been accused of sexual harassment. A number of the films that MAMI has dropped include Rajat Kapoor’s Ladakh, All India Bakchod (AIB) production Chintu Ka Birthday, Ere Gowda directorial Balekempa and Anurag Kashyap’s production Bebaak.

The first person to criticise MAMI’s decision to exclude films was Bebaak director Shazia Iqbal. Iqbal, in an open letter to the festival, argued that attributable to one person her film and therefore the whole team were currently suffering, that she claimed was unfair.

This evening, as MAMI set out its latest edition, its director Anupama Chopra self-addressed the criticism and also talked regarding the #MeToo movement. “It (the movement) has forced all of us to look within and ask ‘What might I even have done differently? What changes now?’ we come to this edition with conflicted emotions. In commonality with the MeToo movement, we decided to set to exclude certain films from the festival.

“As filmmakers and film lovers, we tend to perceive and regret the pain we have caused. I want to personally apologise to all the people we have got discomfited. However we also hopeful that the decision we tend to took – to stand with the ladies who had the bravery to lift their voices – will lead to an environment that is constructive, inclusive and just,” Anupama Chopra said.

The 20th edition of MAMI (Mumbai Academy of Moving Image) Film festival set out on Thursday and plenty of film industry celebrities attended the opening ceremony in Mumbai. Festival director and film critic Anupama Chopra was in attendance alongside MAMI chairman Kiran Rao. The film festival saw the presence of the many actors including Aamir Khan, Dulquer Salmaan, Radhika Apte, Tabu, Kalki Koechlin and Rasika Duggal. Director Rajkumar Hirani and Tanuja Chandra were also there to extend his support to the festival.

The 20th edition of MAMI (Mumbai Academy of Moving Image) Film Festival kicked off on Thursday and many Bollywood celebrities attended the opening ceremony in Mumbai. Festival director and film critic Anupama Chopra was in attendance alongside MAMI chairperson Kiran Rao. The festival saw the presence of many actors including Aamir Khan, Dulquer Salmaan, Radhika Apte, Tabu, Kalki Koechlin and Rasika Duggal. Directors Rajkumar Hirani and Tanuja Chandra were also there to extend his support to the festival. The festival starts on October 25 and lasts until November 1.