“People become interested in an issue like sexual harassment only if the girls are dead,” says Kunjila Mascillamani, a Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute student who attempted suicide alleging that the institute is a 'sex violence zoo'.
The Facebook post appeared yesterday on her Facebook profile after the suicide attempt says that she thought her death “could make people think and listen and act.” Earlier, in her suicide note posted by Ekabali Ghosh on Facebook, she said that she tried to end her life because of SRFTI.
"In December 2015, as many as six girls including me in SRFTI made complaints of sexual harassment against professors and students. Three professors and four students were accused. While all professors were found guilty by Internal Complaints Committee for Sexual Harassment (ICC-SH), the cases against students still hang in a limbo. SRFTI appointed a second ICC called the ‘Student ICC’ to look into the complaints against students. This move which is against the law is yet to be rectified. Two years after the furore it caused in the media, there seems to be no difference. The most recent complaint was lodged against a professor of Department of Producing in December 2016.
...Initially, the students at SRFTI who complained in December 2015 thought that they had been victorious in putting an end to the horrible practice but they were mistaken. After the complaints, they realised that SRFTI authorities were colluding with the guilty professors. Today, the students are fighting against the move by the Ministry of I&B which appointed Ms Debamitra Mitra as Director of SRFTI," Kunjila wrote in feminisminindia.com.
On June 18th blog post in washwomen.blogspot.in, she wrote: "In the present context of continuing harassment by SRFTI, I had written to Minister Venkaiah Naidu and I&B asking them to intervene. Acting Chairperson Amala Akkineni responded asking us for our demands and we have submitted the same to her." Women Against Sexual Harassment (Wash) is a women's' collective based in Kolkata founded in March, run by survivors of sexual violence in Kolkata's campuses.
"Their films are blocked, they are not granted access to the luggage in the hostels. They are prevented from entering the campus while sex offenders roam in the form of professors and students," said Ghosh on Facebook.
"If you are a student of SRFTI and you are sexually harassed, raped, there is no way to live. I tried to end my life once because of SRFTI. But I did not succeed. This time I am sure I will... I tried to live, with all my might. I have been trying since December... Your 'film school' is a sexual violence zoo. I am your first carcass. Eat me now to your heart's content," read Kunjila's suicide note.
Along with the suicide note, Ghosh posted Kunjila's message that she is fine. "It is true that I tried to kill myself. It has stopped bleeding and I'm all right. My friends are with me. I am scared to go to the hospital because that'll result in a police case. Director of SRFTI Debamitra Mitra is telling people that I'm lying. Please know that this isn't true. I'm all right. I'll survive. But you should know that she is lying. That's all I wish," Kunjila wrote to Ghosh.
DH is still trying to reach Director Debamitra Mitra and ICC-SH members for their comments
Kunjila Mascillamani addressing the WASH rally at Jadavpur University on 3rd July, before she attempted to take her own life: