On Monday, Academy Award-winning composer and singer Chinmayi’s mentor, A R Rahman, broke his silence on the #MeToo movement which has seen several women across professions and industries call out predators at work. In Tamil cinema, lyricist Vairamuthu and actors Radha Ravi and John Vijay are some of those who have been named. Posting a message on Twitter last night, Rahman expressed shock at some of the names that have emerged from the industry, and said that he would love to see it become more “cleaner and respectful of women”.
“In all my endeavours, my team and I are committed to creating an environment where everyone finds a safe creative space to bring their best, evolve and succeed,” he said.
— A.R.Rahman (@arrahman) October 22, 2018
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— Chinmayi Sripaada (@Chinmayi) October 22, 2018
Rahman, however, did not comment on Chinmayi – to whom he had offered a break into cinema – or her allegations against Vairamuthu. Echoing Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth, the composer then said that while social media offers “great freedom for victims to speak up”, it must not be misused.
On Sunday, in an interview with News 7 Tamil, AR Raihanah, sister of AR Rahman said: “Rahman has worked with Vairamuthu for many years and he wanted to know if the allegations were true. He doesn’t know what is happening; he is not aware because he doesn’t like to gossip and stays away from it.”
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Addressing rumors that A R Rahman may not work with Chinmayi in the future, Raihanan said: “Usually, Rahman will not work with controversial people. But I am not sure as he is his own person; I cannot speak for him.”
Earlier this month, journalist Sandhya Menon posted screenshots from an anonymous user who accused Vairamuthu of sexual harassment. A day later, singer Chinmayi Sripaada too, shared a detailed account on Twitter in which she said that she was harassed by the lyricist during a trip to Switzerland in 2005-06.
A US-based artist and a singer-anchor also came forward with her account of sexual misconduct against Vairamuthu.
The lyricist, however, denied the allegations made against him in a video posted on his Twitter timeline: “I have been discussing the case with senior lawyers and intellectuals over the past week and have gathered strong evidence. File a case if there’s any truth to the accusations,” he said.