Shwetha Menon breaks silence on resignation from AMMA, says decision was not out of weakness: ‘I refused to be a puppet’

SHwetha Menon’s incumbency as chairman of the connexion of Malayalam pic Artists (AMMA) came to a sudden terminate on Sunday, June 21, when the organisation’s entire executive committee resigned en masse. She has now taken to her Instagram to pen a strongly worded post about her decision to resign, stating that she stepped down out of self-respect, not weakness.What Shwetha saidIn her post, Shwetha wrote, “I thank everyone who has stood by me. But I feel it is important that I put my words before the public myself. The reason why I resigned is because I refused to be a puppet to anyone. Even before the AMMA elections, people like Crime Nandakumar and Martin Menachery were put in front of me to spread misinformation and make fabricated allegations against me. Despite all that, I won the election with the support of the majority of AMMA members. I can assure them that I did everything to the best of my ability. Unfortunately, certain vested interests made sure that we never got the opportunity to investigate the wrongdoings of certain previous committee members.” ‘A forensic audit should be commissioned’She went on to add, “Unfortunately, certain vested interests made sure that we never got the opportunity to investigate the wrongdoings of certain previous committee members. The accounts of the past two terms, including ours, should be thoroughly reviewed. A forensic audit should be commissioned to ensure complete transparency and accountability.”Rejecting speculation about her resignation, she asserted that she was neither aligned with the BJP nor the Left and maintained that her stance was independent. “That decision was not out of weakness. It was out of self-respect. To be continued…Picture abhi baaki hai, mere dost (The story is yet to be completed, my friend),” she concluded.Shwetha faced legal hurdles right from her presidential campaign, including an obscenity case filed over her past acting roles. Addressing the issue at the India Today Conclave in September 2025, she shared her shock at the timing of the lawsuit. She questioned the motives behind the complaint, pointing out that the legal action targeted creative work she had completed more than ten years prior.The tension peaked in May, when AMMA faced heavy backlash over its sponsorship deal with the Vennala Thykattu Sri Mahadeva Temple Trust for a reunion event, triggering a broader debate about the organisation's funding choices. Amid this controversy, Shwetha spoke up to defend the organisation's sponsorship choices. She maintained that because AMMA operates as a charitable entity, it should not reject financial support based on political or religious backgrounds.