The leadership dispute within the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) has entered a new phase after the actors. Joy Mathew, Jayan Cherthala and Kailash formally left the executive committee headed by: Shwetha Menon.
The resignations followed the Ad Hoc committee debate
The resignations were submitted soon after Shwetha Menon publicly challenged the legitimacy of the ad hoc committee through a detailed statement on social media. In his post, he maintained that he continues to hold the position of AMMA president because he has not formally resigned from the position.Earlier, members of the ad hoc committee stated that Shwetha Menon or any member of her executive panel had officially submitted the resignation letters. This is despite the dissolution of the executive committee which was announced during the Annual General Body meeting of the association held last month.The ad hoc committee, headed by Ramesh Pisharody, has started functioning and recently held its first meeting as the leadership issue remains unresolved.
Jayan Cherthala and Kailash explained their decision
Speaking to On Manorama, about his resignation, Kailash confirmed that he has resigned from the executive committee. However, he described it as a personal decision and did not elaborate further.Jayan Cherthala also confirmed his resignation on the same portal, stating that his decision was guided by ethical considerations. According to him, the announcement made before the meeting of the General Body deserves to be respected.He said, “Our disbandment was announced before the members met in the general body. According to the hierarchy of the organization, that decision is valid because it was made before the general body. There may be legal arguments that the decision is invalid, but I respect the overall body and the decisions taken there.Jayan further revealed that he was the first of the three to resign, followed by Joy Mathew and Kailash.Meanwhile, Joy Mathew reportedly stated that he no longer sees any purpose in staying in an organization that is divided. He is said to have maintained that, from a legal point of view, Shwetha Menon remains the president of the association as she has not submitted an official letter of resignation.
Shwetha Menon says she will not resign
Shwetha Menon has reiterated that she has no plans to leave her post until she clears her name and establishes her innocence regarding the allegations leveled against her executive committee.In a statement shared on Instagram, he wrote, “I have remained silent these days for AMMA. I thought that if I remained silent, the controversies surrounding AMMA would be over.He added, “Now, they are saying that I betrayed the members … that I left AMMA. No … I did not betray anyone, nor did I leave AMMA. At the AMMA Annual General Body Meeting held on June 21, 2026, some individuals (precisely, 10-15 AMMA members) came to our Executive Committee to resign with an agenda.They circulated a pre-printed resolution with many baseless allegations against our Executive Committee. We have clear, fact-based, and robust responses to each of the allegations. “The actor stated, “Although the said resolution was handed over to me it was never passed under Article XII(e) of the AMMA By-laws. Of the 243 members who attended the meeting, it failed to get the required two-thirds majority of 162 votes. Therefore, the resolution was not passed and does not have any legal validity.Now, they admit that the Ad-Hoc Committee was formed based on the decision of the General Body.”
Leadership uncertainty continues
AMMA’s leadership crisis remains unresolved with three members now formally resigning and Shwetha Menon continuing to dispute the legal position of the ad hoc committee. All eyes are now on the association’s next move as members await further clarification on the leadership issue.