After popular actress Parvathy, director Anjali Menon and other members of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) criticised the jury of ONV Literary award for honouring #MeToo accused poet Vairamuthu, the Academy said that it will re-examine its decision.
In a statement shared by TNN, on Friday, ONV Cultural Academy chairman and renowned Malayalam movie director Adoor Gopalakrishan said, "At the instance of the selection committee, the award is now under reconsideration."
Tamil poet-lyricist Vairamuthu was accused of sexual harassment by multiple women in 2018 at the height of India's #MeToo.
The award, constituted in the memory of late legendary poet ONV Kurup, is given to poets from Malayalam and other Indian languages by the ONV Cultural Academy and comprises a cash prize of Rs 3,00,000 and a citation.
Earlier, in an interview with The Cue, Gopalakrishnan said that Vairamuthu was selected for the award for his 'execellent writing'. The filmmaker said that he doesn't know if the jury was aware of the charges.
"My personal opinion is that awards should not be decided on the basis of character. As chairman of the Cultural Society, I do not interfere in the decisions of the jury," he was quoted as saying.
ONV's jury included Malayalam University vice chancellor Anil Vallathol and poets Alankode Leelakrishnan and Prabha Varma.
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