After Malayalam actress posts about sexual assault in mall, incident's video goes viral

Kozhikode, Sep 28: In a shocking revelation through her post on Instagram, a popular Malayalam film actress has said she experienced sexual misconduct during a film promotion event at a mall in this north Kerala district.

Expressing her anguish and concern over the "sexual frustration" of the people, the post said another actress also had a similar experience during the event held late on Tuesday night at the busy mall.

A purported video of the incident went viral on social media platforms soon and the local TV channels aired the same. "Kozhikode is a place I loved a lot. But, tonight while returning after a programme, a person from the crowd grabbed me. It disgusts me to say where! Are people around us so frustrated? We had been to several places as part of the promotion.

But, I never had such a pathetic experience anywhere else. My colleague also had a similar experience. She reacted...but I couldn't in that situation as I was dumbstruck for a moment...," the actress said in last night's post.

The other actress, who had been subjected to misbehaviour from the crowd, also shared the harrowing experience through her Instagram page. She said the mall was overcrowded and security personnel were struggling to manage the rush. A person had misbehaved with one of her co-stars but she could not react, the actress said.

"Later, I also encountered a similar experience but I reacted... I wish that no one has to face this kind of unwanted trauma in their life...," she said and wanted the guilty to be punished. Police said an investigation has been launched and efforts are on to identify and trace the culprits.

A promotion event held at the same mall a month ago had to be cut short as the crowd assembled there to witness their favourite actor went out of control.