Malayalam cinema bans Shane Nigam and Sreenath Bhasi but this is not the first time

The powerful unions of the Malayalam film industry on Tuesday decided to impose a ban on two up-and-coming actors Shane Nigam and Sreenath Bhasi . The unions, including the Film Employees Federation of Kerala (FEFKA) and Kerala Film Producers' Association (KFPA), and the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists, popularly known as AMMA, has unanimously decided not to cooperate with these actors on the various chargers, including "dug abuse and indiscipline" on the movie sets.

Both actors have been accused of "behaving badly" on the sets under the influence of drugs. And the film unions in the Malayalam film industry want to make an example out of Shane and Sreenath. And the AMMA has also decided to press the charges against these actors further by submitting a list of actors, who allegedly abuse drugs on movie sets, to the government. 

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The implications of this ban and the said actions from the unions could be detrimental to the promising careers of Shane and Sreenath. Both young talents have made a mark in the film industry in a short time by delivering several memorable performances. 

Shane and Sreenath have also worked together in a few movies, namely Kumbalangi Nights. The 2019 Malayalam drama about a dysfunctional family was a big critical and commercial success. While Fahadh Faasil took everyone by surprise by playing a deeply misogynistic creep, Shane and Sreenath also managed to deliver memorable performances. 

Shane is also popular for his performances in Eeda, Ishq and Bhoothakaalam. Sreenath has also been part of several hit movies, including Ustad Hotel, Parava, Virus, Anjaam Pathiraa, Kappela, Home and Bheeshma Parvam. 

This is not the first time that Shane and Sreenath have been subjected to such disciplinary actions in the Malayalam film industry. In 2019, the Kerala Film Producers Association banned Shane on similar charges. He was accused of tardiness and indiscipline causing huge monetary losses to his producers. At the time, Shane's action had allegedly caused the producers of Veyil and Qurubani a loss to the tune of Rs 6 crore. And Shane changing his hairstyle in the middle of the production of Veyil also delayed the project. Following this a ban was imposed on the actor. However, later the issue was amicably resolved after Shane agreed to fulfil all his commitments to the producers without any further delay. 

Recently, Shane again made headlines for his alleged rude behaviour on the sets of the upcoming movie RDX. He was accused of walking out of the movie sets without completing his portions, disrupting the film's production. 

Last year, the KFPA also banned Sreenath for the way he behaved with a woman reporter while promoting his movie Chattambi. Irked by a question Sreenath snapped at the reporter and used the F-word while expressing his irritation. It had caused him a lot of problems as he was subjected to police questioning, subsequent arrest and a drug test. However, that ban was temporary. The KFPA withdraw his ban after Sreenath regretted his actions in public. 

The recent ban against Sreenath is evoked on the charges of giving the same dates to multiple projects, which has allegedly caused losses to producers.