Malayalam actor Alencier Lopez is in the eye of a controversy after he made misogynistic comments about the Kerala State Film Awards statuette. The actor went up on stage to receive a Special Jury Award for his performance in the film Appan (2022) from Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, after which he said that the state must stop “tempting” people like him with a trophy modelled on the female body.
“I have a request. Do not tempt us by presenting this statuette, modelled on a woman. We have a Chief Minister who is an epitome of masculine strength. So we should be awarded with a figurine that reflects the strength of a man,” he said. The 53rd Kerala State Film Awards ceremony was held at the Nishagandhi Auditorium in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday, 14 September.
The statement was soon criticised by many on social media and on television news debates, with many calling it sexist and demanding that his award must be withdrawn. Calling Alencier’s comments disgraceful, actor and trans rights activist Sheetal Shyam penned a note on Facebook, recalling her experience of working with him in the 2018 Malayalam film Aaabhaasam. “While we were shooting in Bengaluru, Alencier made problematic statements to a co-actor and we questioned him on it. He also tried to film an older female actor while she was asleep and wasn’t willing to delete the footage until the actor insisted many times. He was under the influence of alcohol even during work hours, and he tried to get the contact details of a trans woman artist from my make-up person, with wrong intentions…” reads Sheetal’s post.
Responding to Alencier’s statements, dubbing artist Bhagyalakshmi said in a news hour debate that he should not have accepted the award if he did not like how it looked. “His remarks are extremely anti-female, and should not be entertained…,” she said. Alencier, who was also part of this debate, however, walked out mid-way as she was making her point.
When asked about the controversy, Alencier told the media that he would not apologise for his statements. “I spoke for me, my father, my state… we should be awarded a trophy that reflects male strength, not a female statuette. Some people did clap when I said this at the event, which means they agreed with me. It is not men who objectify women but women who use and objectify men. All I said is I want a male-looking trophy,” he said.
Apart from the comments on the statuette, Alencier also mentioned in his award acceptance speech that the prize money was insufficient. “Don’t insult me and Kunchacko Boban by giving a mere Rs 25,000. I urge the jury chairman Gautam Ghose to please increase the amount…,” he said.
Alencier was earlier called out by actor Divya Gopinath for his alleged acts of sexual harassment on the sets of a film. He then gave a public apology in an interview with the Times of India. Later, scriptwriter Syam Pushkaran, who had worked with Alencier in several films including the popular Maheshinte Prathikaram, said that he would stand with the survivor and that humanity comes before friendship, indicating that he would not associate with Alencier anymore.