Actor Mohanlal, who has been president of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) for two terms, has retained the post for a third time. The decision came during a meeting of the actors' body on Wednesday, June 19, at Kochi, when other contestants withdrew from the election. However, there will be changes in other key positions including that of the general secretary, held for the longest time by actor Edavela Babu. The election for other positions will be held during the general body meeting on June 30.
According to Manorama Online, actors Siddique, Cuckoo Parameswaran, Unni Sivapal, Jagadish, Manju Pillai and Jayan Cherthala will be contesting for the posts of general secretary and vice-president.
There are, according to last year's statistics, 498 members in the AMMA -- including 245 women and 253 men. The organisation was registered in 1994 as an association and welfare organisation for actors in Malayalam cinema. It also focuses on charity work, including for the welfare of the ailing and helpless actors in the industry.
However, the organisation has been involved in a few controversies over the years, including the time it expelled late veteran actor Thilakan in 2010. In 2017, the association had removed actor Dileep, charged as an accused in the abduction and sexual assault of a female actor in Kochi that year. However, when AMMA decided to reinstate him a year later, several members of the organisation, including the surviving actor, resigned in protest. A bunch of them had formed the Women in Cinema Collective in 2017, to protect the interests of women in the industry, which they felt were often not taken care of by AMMA.