The MeToo movement, aimed at bringing to light the plight of women who have faced sexual harassment and sexual assault, has gone on to receive a thunderous response world over with many big names in the Tamil film industry too now coming under the scanner.
That said, the MeToo movement can also be used to manipulate facts, which as per veteran actor Thiagarajan is just what has happened when Mumbai-based still photographer Pretika Menon accused him of sexual misconduct last week.
Apparently, Pretika claimed Thiagarajan had made sexual advances on her during the work schedule of his 2011 film, Ponnar Shankar, starring his son, Prashanth, while also alleging the veteran actor turned director had knocked her hotel room door at Perambalur several times in the night.
Meanwhile, Thiagarajan had called for a press meet to address the accusations saying, “What good name I had earned over the past 50 years had gone to dust when this girl posted on her Facebook page that I had tried to sexually misbehave with her. Most people don’t use Facebook or WhatsApp and when a news like this is published in newspapers, the impression that cinema is bad will remain for a long time.”
Since then, Pretika Menon is said to have deactivated her Facebook account and Thiagarajan has said he will be filing a defamation case against her for false accusations and further added because of such wrong statements, the MeToo movement had suffered a hit as a result of such people.
