Chinmayi slams Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan for backing MeToo-accused Vairamuthu
What's the story
Singer Chinmayi Sripaada has slammed superstars Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan for congratulating veteran poet-lyricist Vairamuthu on his recent Jnanpith Award win. In 2018, Sripaada had accused Vairamuthu of sexual harassment and has continued to amplify similar complaints by several other women. The singer's criticism comes after both Rajinikanth and Haasan publicly praised Vairamuthu's achievement on social media.
Criticism
'Men will never be on our side...': Sripaada
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Sripaada questioned the support from senior industry figures. Quoting Haasan's best wishes for the poet, she wrote, "For God's sake, men in such power in cinema transitioning to politics, completely turning a deaf ear to women who come on record to say they were molested by "his uncle-mentor" must remind women who vote that men will never be on our side."
Allegations
'Who cares if multiple women were traumatized?'
She further wrote, "The weirdest thing, one of the women in his own party publicly named the Poet. End of the day, men WILL stand by their bros, uncles, dads, friends, mentors. Who cares if multiple women were traumatized? (sic)." Sripaada also reacted to Rajinikanth's congratulatory post for Vairamuthu on X. She tweeted in Tamil: "Ayyyyyyoooo!!! Puriyave puriyaadha??! (Don't understand at all?)."
Disappointment
She also shared a lengthy post about Vairamuthu's alleged crimes
In another post, Sripaada said, "In 2018, multiple women of different age groups named one Poet - Lyricist as their molester." "Today the Gnanpith is awarded to the man, after someone like Sri Jayakantan, whose daughter called Vairamuthu out for presenting a forged, fake letter by Sri Jayakanthan 'praising' Vairamuthu."
Consequences
Sripaada spoke about the consequences she faced for speaking out
In another post, Sripaada spoke about the consequences she faced for speaking out during the #MeToo movement. She said that several women had spoken out before her, "The collective voices of the women who named him were silenced. I paid a very heavy price; the rest of the women who left their dreams behind weren't half as lucky as I."
Award
Jnanpith award and Vairamuthu's literary career
The Jnanpith award is India's highest literary honor, with Vairamuthu being the third Tamil recipient in 20 years. The award recognizes his contributions to poetry, novels, and film lyrics. Vairamuthu started his literary career with the poetry collection Vaigarai Megangal in 1972 and has since published over 40 books, including poetry collections and novels. Several women have accused him of sexual harassment. The poet has denied all allegations and said that they are "filled with ulterior motives."