Nikkil Murugan, the Tamil film PRO who was accused of misconduct by filmmaker Lakshmy Ramakrishnan, has apologised for his actions. Nikkil reportedly met Lakshmy and expressed regret for anything he might have done to make her feel uncomfortable.
Met @LakshmyRamki & I apologised for making her uncomfortable Unknowingly . & her request to treat women as professionals based on the talent is assured from my side & will work towards levelling the Ground for all Professionals & I will stand with #MeToo
— Nikkil (@onlynikil) October 22, 2018
Nikkil wrote on his social media account that all such actions were done ‘unknowingly’, and that he will stand with #MeToo. Lakshmy had alleged that Nikkil used his strong position in the industry to try and elicit sexual favours from her. She said that she lost out on big opportunities and was not invited to award events when she ignored his advances.
Lakshmy later appreciated Nikkil for taking the effort to explain his side of things. She also hoped that he would treat young girls who approached him with due respect.
That is like a man and really hope you treat the young girls who come with dreams & passion , with due respect. We need to take this movement forward with a positive approach and achieve the purpose of #metoo, which is levelling the ground? https://t.co/3fW3L1PRgg
— Lakshmy Ramakrishnan (@LakshmyRamki) October 22, 2018
Earlier today, Lakshmy wrote on her social media account that Nikkil had reached out to her through a mutual friend. She said that he was on his way to meet her in person and explain.
I have 2 more stories about the same person in my inbox after I called out @onlynikil . Meanwhile, he approached one of my friends and requested for a meeting to clear misunderstanding ( if any) . They are on the way , will update?
— Lakshmy Ramakrishnan (@LakshmyRamki) October 22, 2018
Lakshmy also added that she had received two stories about a person on her social media account, after she called out Nikkil as part of the ongoing #MeToo movement. She did not name the person, however.
Nikkil Murugan has been handling public relations in Tamil cinema for close to two decades. When contacted about the allegations, Nikkil first claimed that he was unaware; later, he said that he did not want to comment on the issue.
The #MeToo movement took root in India when academic Raya Sarkar posted a list of sexual predators in academia last year. More recently, comic Utsav Chakraborty was called out by multiple women on social media for his inappropriate behaviour. Soon, women in India began to name and shame sexual predators in their fields. Lyricist Vairamuthu, actor Radha Ravi, musician Anu Malik, directors Subhash Kapoor and Sajid Khan are some of the celebrities who have been called out in the movement.
