As Hollywood confronts the Harvey Weinstein scandal and discusses the implications of sexual assault in their industry, Bollywood figures are also talking about such potential problems as well.
Indian actress Priyanka Chopra was one of the first to speak out last week. In remarks made to the 2017 Marie Claire Power Trip last week, The Hindu reported that Chopra said that stories like Weinstein happen not just in Hollywood, but “all over the world.” Chopra declared that men who commit such crimes do it not just for the sex, but for the feeling of power over women.
Chopra is not the only Bollywood figure to speak about sexual assault and the casting couch. Actress Vidya Balan spoke up about how even top actresses are afraid to say anything afterward due to the power imbalance and fear of losing their jobs. Bollywood film producer Pahlaj Nihalani said he agreed with Chopra’s remarks according to News18 and outright declared that “there are Harvey Weinsteins in Bollywood too” and that Bollywood “has a very clear list of offenders who misuse their positions.”
Despite the strong words, neither Chopra nor Nihalani offered any specific names, though Nihalani did encourage victims to come forward.
A culture of abuse?
Prominent Bollywood figures have been accused of sexual crimes over the years, with the final legal results being extremely controversial.
In August 2016, director Mahmood Farooqui, the co-director of the 2010 Bollywood film “Peepli Live,” was convicted of raping an American woman in June 2015 and sentenced to seven years. But last month, the sentence was overturned by an Indian court which declared according to The Guardian “that a feeble no may mean a yes.” The court cited the fact that Farooqui’s victim knew him and was educated as reasons to overturn the conviction.
Industry-wide problem
Other Bollywood figures, on various movie sites, who have been accused of sexual crimes include producer Vikas Bahl and actor Shakti Kapoor. Unlike Weinstein, who while not charged has been fired from his company and is now a social pariah, accused Bollywood figures continue to film as Bahl is working on a biopic of Indian mathematician Anand Kumar.
Many young women who were victims may look at these accusations which went nowhere and feel as if they have no choice but to stay silent. But Chopra had something to say to her fellow women.
“We’ve been told our femininity is our weakness, but it is not,” Chopra said. “We can be compassionate. We can be tough. When you open your mouth, you deliver.”
