#MeToo case returns to ground filmmaker Leena

Leena Manimekalai, who had accused a producer-director of sexual harassment, has received a notice asking why her passport should not be impounded

Independent filmmaker and poet Leena Manimekalai, who named producer and director Susi Ganesan during the #MeToo movement in 2018, is countering a notice that seeks to impound her passport.

The Chennai passport office has sent her a notice, asking her why her passport shouldn’t be impounded as a criminal case of defamation is pending against her.

It was in 2017 that Leena first spoke about a sexual harassment incident. “It was after the Malayalam-actress’s abduction case that I found the courage and the need to speak about the incident but I didn’t name anyone in the post. During the #MeToo movement in 2018, I named the man responsible for causing me so much pain,” she recollects.

After naming Susi Ganesan, she says, “all hell broke loose”. Several cases followed, including a defamation case against her.

“Usually when a #MeToo accusation was made, the person being named would say whether the incident happened or not. Susi Ganesan’s posts on social media were about my ‘questionable character’, referring to me as ‘mentally unstable’ and ‘seeking attention.’ My reaction was not published,” she says.

As the #MeToo campaign gained momentum, more people named Susi Ganesan.

“Actor Amala Paul put out a statement about an incident with him and how she was abused by him and his wife,” Leena, who has made films in Tamil on oppression and other social topics, says.

Five months later, he slapped a criminal defamation case against Leena. “A new film of mine was out and I had to go to my Busan Film Festival world premiere. The trial moved slowly. Once I couldn’t attend a court session, which led to warning of a warrant. I had to drop the screening of another film after this,” she says.

The petition by Susi Ganesan was about Leena’s political stances and her thoughts on sexuality, all of which she found “bizarre”.

Leena then got an admission award from York University for filmmakers, which covers tuition fees and other expenses – the awardee becomes a resident filmmaker and makes films and is presented a degree. Due to the pandemic, Leena couldn’t travel to Canada for the course, and was attending virtual classes. “In September 2020, I received a notice that a case was filed to withhold my passport. The notice said I was trying to flee India like Vijay Mallya and that I was trying to migrate to Canada in the name of future studies,” she says. The petition was dismissed in November 2020. After this, a new petition that Leena couldn’t speak to the media was filed. “I never spoke a word to the press about the trial,” she says.

On February 8, another show cause notice arrived. “It was from the Chennai passport office. Now my lawyer and I have to send a counter notice, stating that the case was already challenged and dismissed in court.”

Other #MeToo cases

*Singer Chinmayi Sripada was among those who accused lyricist Vairamuthu of making sexual advances. He denied the allegations and said he would file defamation cases.

*Sruthi Hariharan named Kannada actor Arjun Sarja during the #MeToo movement. He has filed a Rs 5 crore defamation case against her.

* Bollywood heroine Tanushree Dutta accused actor Nana Patekar of inappropriate behaviour during the shooting of a film. She had filed a complaint in 2008, and filed another in 2018. Nana got a clean chit.

Story behind the laws

Leena believes many laws in our land came about “because women spoke up”.

“I hope for a verdict which says sexual harassment cases cannot be challenged by defamation laws,” she says.

She would earlier encourage women to speak up against any wrong they faced, but now, she says, she is not so sure.

Defamation laws, framed by the colonialists, are being used by today’s masters, she says. “Actually, I am the one who is being defamed,” she signs off.