MUMBAI – A year after Bollywood followed Hollywood by naming male predatorsaccused of sexual harassment, many women say they have suffered whilealleged perpetrators are back in the limelight.
In the US, #MeToo triggered the downfall of powerbrokers including HarveyWeinstein, Kevin Spacey, and Brett Ratner. Victims were hailed astrailblazers for speaking out, and millions of dollars were raised tosupport their cases.
In Bollywood, women have faced a backlash, campaigners say.
When singer Sona Mohapatra accused composer Anu Malik of sexual misconductshe was told to vacate her judge’s seat on TV talent show, “Sa Re Ga Ma Pa”.
“I was marked as a troublemaker and asked to leave. Overnight,” Mohapatrasaid last month. Programme producers Zee TV denied her claims, telling AFPher departure had “no connection” with #MeToo.
The maelstrom forced Malik, who also had a molestation case filed againsthim in the 1990s, to stand down last year as a judge on the Sony TV show”Indian Idol”.
He was later reinstated. But after campaigners fought back, Malik, who hasdismissed the allegations as “false and unverified”, announced hisdeparture for a second time last week.
It was a rare victory for #MeToo in Bollywood, where many high-flyersaccused of harassment and even rape have revived their careers after lyinglow for a few months.
Director Vikas Bahl, whose name was initially removed from the credits ofthe hit movie “Super 30” following a sexual misconduct complaint, wasreinstated after being cleared by an internal committee, which reportedlydid not involve the victim.
Filmmaker Subhash Kapoor, on trial for molestation, was initially droppedfrom a movie produced by Aamir Khan, one of Bollywood’s most-feted actors.But the superstar backtracked, saying only a court could establish whetheror not he is guilty — a process likely to take years in India’soverburdened legal system.
Veteran actor Alok Nath, under investigation for rape, has sued thecomplainant for defamation. His film “Main Bhi” (“Me Too”), in which heplays a judge overseeing sexual harassment cases, is awaiting release.
– ‘Rehab without remorse’ –
“I imagine the advice many of the men got was ‘just go underground for ayear and people will forget’,” said singer Shweta Pandit, who was 15 whencomposer Malik, then 40, allegedly asked her to kiss him in exchange forwork.
A classically-trained vocalist, Pandit told AFP the 2001 incident made her”shut down” and become a recluse.
“I stopped trusting people,” she said, tearing up. “Singing was the onlyway I could express myself.”
She never discussed the incident until the #MeToo campaign jolted her intospeaking out last year.
Since then, she has faced online trolling and a backlash.
“Some men are like, ‘if we hire her, then she might say something, betterbe careful.’ For some people, the moment a woman speaks, she is trouble,”she said.
“Many well-wishers had warned me against saying anything but I have tostand my ground.”
Anusha Khan, a consultant who conducts workshops against sexual harassmentin the entertainment industry, told AFP: “Bollywood is still grappling withthe fact that this problem exists.”
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“The protection system for predators is very strong.”
As a result, many accused men have resurrected their careers with relativeease, she said.
“It’s rehab without remorse.”
– ‘Not backing down’ –
Even the case credited with kickstarting India’s #MeToo movement has hitroadblocks.
Actress Tanushree Dutta first accused Bollywood star Nana Patekar oftouching her inappropriately while filming a song in 2008, when she was 24and he was 57.
At least two people — a journalist and an assistant director — havepublicly corroborated her version of events.
The incident effectively ended her career, the former Miss India told AFP.Police refused even to register her harassment complaint.
“I lost friends, I lost work, I went through periods of depression.
“When your work is taken away from you, you feel like you have no reason towake up sometimes,” she said.
Dutta repeated the claims in an interview a decade later, triggering anoutpouring by women across India.
Police agreed to accept her 2008 complaint but closed the case in June,citing insufficient evidence.
Dutta accused them of deliberately botching the investigation.
Patekar, who has repeatedly denied the allegations, did not answer AFPinterview requests.
For Dutta, who plans to appeal the police decision, #MeToo is only abeginning.
“I never set out to be a revolutionary,” she said.
“But they already destroyed my career so what have I got to lose? I am notbacking down.”-APP/AFP
