Saravanan got evicted directly from Bigg Boss House for saying he’d groped women

The reality show Bigg Boss Tamil Season 3 came in for much flak after Saravanan confessed to host Kamal Haasan that he used to get into a crowded bus to molest women when he was in college. The actor made this statement when Kamal was trying to sort out the issue between Meera and Cheran and was explaining how women face a lot of trouble, including getting molested by men when travelling by bus. It was then that Saravanan raised his hand and said even he had done it when he was in college. Instead of condemning the actor, everyone had a laugh over it, and this didn’t go down well with netizens.

One of the celebrities to have called out Saravanan for his comment, and Kamal Haasan and the channel for the way they reacted, was Chinmayi. According to her she said: “It’s amazing how the general public sentiment is pro-Saravanan. However, my question was about why the channel even telecast the comment and the applause, even if the audience had applauded. They let the whole issue slide, and if not for the fact that so many people tweeted about it even before I did, it wouldn’t have been taken up. It’s being portrayed as if I ruined his career. Calling out can’t be a problem; those who call out become the bad people. Anyway, I’m not the one who has to forgive Saravanan. He initially laughed and joked, and that’s what needed to be called out. And he belongs to a generation where making sexist jokes and all were seemingly common. The generation of men today has changed. My problem is with the way the whole episode was displayed as a joke. When you joke about something like this, it shows such behaviour is normal. Another big question that needs to be asked is, do channels have an ICC, where people, even guests who come for shows, can register their complaints?”