The India Me Too Movement. And the people named in it in film and TV… A rolling list.

On Thursday, October 5, 2017, the New York Times published what is now a Pulitzer Prize-winning expose from journalists Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey. The article titled “Harvey Weinstein Paid Off Sexual Harassment Accusers for Decades”, led to two different movements finding their feet, Me Too and Times Up.

 

In 2006, Tarana Burke launched #MeToo to promote “empowerment through empathy” among victims of sexual abuse, particularly women of color. 

On January 1, 2018, 400 predominantly British and American women in the entertainment industry including actresses Ashley Judd, Reese Witherspoon, Kerry Washington, Brie Larson, Anne Hathaway and Emma Watson announced the formation of Time’s Up, an initiative created “to fight sexual harassment in Hollywood and beyond.”

 

A year later, the conversation has finally found its way into India. And at the forefront of this stands former actress Tanushree Dutta, who restarted it on September 25, 2018 with her decade old accusation against Nana Patekar. And it only gets darker as some of these go as far as rape, not harassment.

 

Here is an attempt to list the perpetrators from film and TV (Hindi/ English) caught in the storm, based off accusations with at least one confirmation of accusation. As such, we have not included accounts that are anonymous, and have not been confirmed by accused in part or full.

(We will update this list as more people come forward, man or woman.) 

LAST UPDATED: October 21, 2018

Accuser: Tanushree Dutta, former actor  

Act: Accused of inappropriate behaviour on the film set of a song for the film Horn Ok Pleasss 10 years ago.

Support: This accusation has been corroborated by Shyni Shetty and Janice Sequeira.

So Far: a) The actor has consistently denied the accusation.
b) Dutta has filed an FIR against Nana Patekar, producer Sami Siddiqui, and song choreographer Ganesh Acharya.
c) Maharashtra State Commission for Women, the panel issued notices to Nana Patekar, producer Samee Siddiqui, Ganesh Acharya and director Rakesh Sarang.
d) Nana Patekar will not be a part of the upcoming film Housefull 4.
e) Patekar has sent a legal notice to Dutta demanding a written apology from her.
f) Patekar’s lawyer has responded to the CINTAA notice saying the allegations are baseless, unsubstantial, false and far from the actual truth.

 

Accuser: Tanushree Dutta, former actor 

Act: Accused of inappropriate behaviour while shooting a 2005 movie Chocolate, when he told her to remove her clothes for a dance sequence with actor Irrfan Khan.

So Far: a) Agnihotri’s lawyer has denied the “frivolous” claims.
b) Agnihotri has served a legal notice to initiate defamation action against Dutta. 

 

Accuser: Former Phantom Films Employee

Act: Accused of putting his hand inside her dress, masturbating on the employee after a work party in May 2015 in Goa. This was followed by months of abuse at work.

Support: Phantom Films co-founders Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane have gone on record to say they believe the woman. Kangana Ranaut and Nayani Dixit, both actresses from Queen, have also come out in support of the woman.

So Far: a) Phantom Films has been dissolved. 
b) Hrithik Roshan, working in his upcoming film Super 30, has issued a conditional statement.
c) Imran Kan has issued a statement saying three actresses have confided in him in the past about the same. 
d) A Mid-Day report says that Amazon Prime Video has dropped Bahl from a show he was to direct for the company.
e) On October 9, Kashyap announced he is stepping down from the Mumbai Film Festival board.

f) Vikas Bahl has sent a personal defamation notice to ex-partners Kashyap and Motwane.
g) In the personal defamation case being heard in Mumbai High Court, the victim has conveyed she does not want to file a case against Bahl via her lawyer.
h) Shazia Iqbal’s short film Bebaak has been dropped from Mumbai Film Festival. She says she was told on call this is as Anurag Kashyap is a producer on the film.

 

4. Utsav Chakraborty, comedian 

Accuser: Mahima Kukreja

Act: Accusing of sending lewd messages to women and minor girls requesting topless photos, di*k pics and more.

Support: Multiple women have come forward.

Accuser: Anonymous Woman

Act: Accused of sexual harassment incident in 2015 and 2016 by a woman who wished to remain anonymous, wherein he made unwelcome advances and later, emotionally blackmailed and emotionally abused for almost five months.

So Far: a) Chakraborty has acknowledged the claims, Khamba has vociferously denied violation of consent via Instagram but has acknowledged that he knows who this woman is.
b) After an initial dismissal, Chakraborty, who now faces a possible police investigation. 

c) AIB co-founder Tanmay Bhat, who was made aware of such behavior by Chakraborty, and Gursimran Khamba have both stepped down.
d) Hotstar has announced stopping the production of On Air With AIB. Mumbai Film Festival has removed the film by AIB from its 2018 lineup.

 

Accuser: 2 anonymous women via Sandhya Menon.

Support: Katherine Filaseta, another anonymous woman.

Act: Accused of inappropriate behavior, one journalist shared details of a telephonic interview in which he asked if she was “As sexy as she sounds” and “tell me your vital stats.” 

So Far: a) Kapoor has issued an apology without accepting the accusation. 
b) Mumbai Film Festival has removed the film by Kapoor from its 2018 lineup.

 

Accuser: A female journalist in Muscat via Sandhya Menon.

Support: Natasha Hemrajani, photographer and Sona Mohapatra, singer, anonymous family friend of Kher, and Simran Soni, consultant.

Act: “This creep kept his hand on my thigh.” 

So Far: Kher has issued an apology without accepting the accusation.

 

Accuser: Natasha Hemrajani, photographer

Act: Kept “forcibly kissing her” even when she said no multiple times.

So Far: The actor has issued an apology.
 

Accuser: Vinta Nanda, TV director and writer

Act: RAPE
Support: Sandhya Mridul, actress, Deepika Amin, actress and anonymous crew member from film Hum Saath Saath Hain.

So Far: a) In what may have come across as the most vivid story of pain and lifelong trauma, Vinta Nanda published a detailed post on Facebook on October 8. Go here to read.
b) Nath has moved a civil suit against writer-director Vinta Nanda, seeking a public apology and Re 1 in damages.
c) Nanda has lodged a complaint with the police, which has been accepted.
d) Nath’s lawyer has responded to the IFTDA notice saying the reason to show cause does not arise when “There is no complaint made at all made with any of the police authorities nor filed with any of the legal authorities.”

11. Aditi Mittal, comedian

Accuser: Kaneez Surka, comedian

Act: Kissing her on stage without consent.

So Far: Aditi Mittal retweeted Kaneez’s accusation. While she did not accept the full extent of the allegation, she has issued an apology.

12. ​Subhash Kapoor, filmmaker

Accuser: Geetika Tyagi, former actor
Act: Accused of sexual harassment, when the actress uploaded a video of confronting him. Watch here.

So Far: a) Tyagi had filed molestation case in 2014 against the filmmaker. 
b) But this has ended up as part of the Me Too Movement due to Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao issuing a statement stating that their production house, Aamir Khan Productions, is stepping away from Subhash Kapoor’s upcoming biopic called Mogul, on Gulshan Kumar, the late founder of T-Series.

c) Later, Bhushan Kumar has been reported to have dropped Kapoor from film altogether.

d) Ekta Kapoor has also fired him from her web series titled The Verdict.
e) Kapoor “intends to prove his innocence in the court of law.”

13. Sajid Khan, filmmaker
Accuser: Saloni Chopra, his former Assistant Director
Act: Months of harassment and abuse in 2011, with constant references and conversations about his d**k. Read her harrowing account here.
Support: Karishma Upadhyay, journalist. Read here. Rachel White, actress. Read here. Simran Suri, actress.
So Far: a) Akshay Kumar has stalled the shoot of Housefull 4.
b) Khan has stepped down as director.

14. Suhel Seth, celebrity consultant
Accuser: Filmmaker​ Natashja Rathore,​ ​journalist Mandakini Gahlot​.

Support: Two anonymous women including a minor, author Ira Trivedi, model Diandra Soares

Act: At least 3 women have accused him of “shoving his tongue down her throat”. 

So Far: Silence on Seth’s end.

Accuser: Chitrangada Singh, actor

Act: Dainik Bhaskar quotes the actress to have said that on the sets of Babumoshai Bandookbaaz, “When I shot for the film, suddenly they came up with a titillating scene and asked me to do it with Nawazuddin. The director just ordered ‘apna petticoat uthao aur ragdo aapne aap ko’! Who talks like this? He was just atrocious. I was offended, and I walked out.”

​She also ​says that during the incident,​ ​fellow actor​ Siddiqui​ and a female ​crew member ​were silent spectators​.​

​So Far: ​This is the second time Chitrangada is making these allegations.She had made these accusations during the release of the film as well. Kushan Nandy had refuted the allegations back then, saying “intimate scenes were not the reason behind her walking out of the project” while denying Chitrangada’s allegations at that time. She had already shot the intimate scenes but was unhappy with the script and wanted specific changes in it.

16. Subhash Ghai, filmmaker
Accuser: Kate Sharma, actor
Act: “He called me at his house on August 6. 5-6 people were present there and he asked me to give him a massage. I massaged him & went to wash my hands, he followed me and called me to his room to talk & tried to kiss me,” Kate Sharma was quoted as saying by ANI.
So Far: Sharma has filed a molestation police complaint against Ghai.

17. Vicky Sidana, casting director
Accuser: Kritika Sharma, actor. There have been anonymous reports put out by Mid-Day too.
Act: Accused of sexual misconduct and attempted rape by Sharma in an interaction with ZoomTV. “Suddenly this guy pushes me on the bed, pulls down my pants and tries to force himself on me. I kept saying let me go, let me go. He did not stop.” Watch the full video here.

18. Sham Kaushal, action director, father to Vicky Kaushal
Accuser: Nameeta Prakash (assistant director/second unit director)
Act: Accused of requests to drink together in an inappropriate manner during a 2006 outdoor shoot, followed by showing a porn MMS clip without consent. Read here.
So Far: Prakash has also said she ensured to never worm with Kaushal again.
Kausha has issued an apology without accepting the accusation.

19. Ashish Patil, Business Head of Y-Films, YRF
Accuser: Anonymous woman account shared via Japleen Pasricha, but YRF now knows her identity.
Act: Misuse of power and privilege to mislead her and sexually use her.
So Far: YRF requested for the woman to get in touch with them so any action could be taken. And she did.
Patil had been sent on an “administrative leave” while YRF investigates. He has now been fired.

Accuser: Mandana Karimi

Act: “Harassment doesn’t mean to touch me, it means to make my life hell. I was too miserable. I didn’t talk to anybody about it. It was my Kya Kool Hain Hum 3 director. His name is Umesh.”

21. Jatin Das, Padma Bhushan painter, father to filmmaker Nandita Das
Accuser: Nisha Bora, conservationist
Support: Garusha Katoch​, writer​.​
Act: Sexually harassing her at his Khidki Village studio in 2004, calling him “My molester”. Read the full account here.
So Far: a) Das has denied the allegations.
b) His daughter Nandita has issued a statement in support of both her father and the Me Too Movement.

22. Mukesh Chhabra, casting director turned filmmaker
Accuser: There is no publice accuser yet. While there were anonymous reports put out by Mid-Day and articles from August resurfaced regarding sexual harassment faced by actress Sanjana Sanghi on the sets of his debut film Kizzie Aur Many, some women from the same production have possibly come forward to Fox Star Studios.
Act: Refusing to address complaints made by Sanghi regarding sexual harassment at the hands of actor Sushant Singh Rajput.
So Far: a) Chhabra rubbished the reports.
b) Fox Star issued a statement saying Chhabra has been suspended until they investigate.
c) Lara Dutta has refused to accept work through Chhabra’s company. Read full account here via her husband, Mahesh Bhupathi.

23. Anu Malik, music composer
Accuser: Sona Mohapatra, singer, called him a “pedophile” and “serial predator”.

Support: Shweta Pandit, singer
Act: Pandit, when 15 was told by Malik, “I will give you this song with Sunidhi and Shaan, but first give me a kiss now.” Read here. Two more anonymous women, verified according to Mid-Day, have come forward.
So Far: a) Malik denied having ever met Mohapatra.
b) Malik has denied Pandit’s allegation.
c) Malik may have been asked to step down as judge of Indian Idol 4 by Sony Entertainment.​

24. Anirban Blah, talent manager and co-founder of Kwan.
Accuser: Four woman came out anonymously to Mid-Day, which confirms their existence.
Act: All four talk about unwarranted advances and conversations about sex during work meetings.
So Far: a) Blah resigned from Kwan.
b) Blah allegedly sent a suicide note to Times of India before attempting the same. The police intervened. In his note, he blames his childhood for his relationship with sex and addresses the victims, “To anyone I may have hurt, I am sorry. This isn’t revenge for you. This is justice.”

25. Vipul Shah, filmmaker
Accuser: Elnaaz Norouzi, actor

Act: Three months of sexual harassment under the garb of a role in Namaste England. ​”​I was mentally tortured for three months. It was evident that if I slept with Vipul, I would get the part. Every time I went to his office, he tried (to hit) on me. He (would) inappropriately touch me, and (try to) kiss me.​”​ Read her account here.
So Far: Actress Kubbra Sait has tweeted Norouzi “isn’t the only one to have experienced this by this man.”

26. Ajit Thakur, Head at Reliance Content Studio
Accuser: Supriya Prasad, a TV Fiction Writing alumna of Film and Television Institute of India (FTII).
Act: Accused Thakur of forcing her to have alcohol and asking inappropriate questions about her sex life.
So Far: a) No response from Thakur.
b) Thakur has resigned as from Reliance ​”to pursue his legal remedies”.

27. Vairamuthu​, ​Tamil lyricist and poet
​Accuser: ​Chinmayi Sripaada, singer and anonymous accounts via Sandhya Menon.
Act: Accused of of sexual misconduct and intimidation and asking for sexual favours in exchange for professional opportunity. She also claims she was also told that “she won’t have a career” should she fail to “cooperate”.
So Far: Vairamuthu has denied all charges. “It has become fashionable to cast aspersions on those who are popular. I have been shamed repeatedly in recent times. This is one of them. I dismiss anything other than truth. Truth will win.” 

28. Mushtaq Sheikh, TV screenwriter
Accuser: Rahul Raj Singh​, TV actor​
Act: Accused of repeated sexual advances ten years back, and ruining his career upon being rejected. “He grabbed my head and started unbuttoning me.”
​

29. Arjun Sarja, actor
Accuser:  Sruthi Hariharan, Kannada actor
Act: Accused the actor of running his hands up and down her back and pulling her towards his body without her consent during the rehearsal of a romantic scene, at a shoot in 2016.

​So Far: a) Sarja has denied the allegations.

b) Film director Arun Vaidyanathan also issued a statement on Facebook saying he is disheartened. “The said intimate scene was written much more intimate than what was shot finally and Arjun Sir requested me to tone it down during the scripting stage itself.”

 

The movement is brewing as strongly in the world of journalism in India. There has been some confusion between what and what is not sexual harassment, as accusations are being flung across in India, when women finally seem to be getting a voice. 

IPC Sec 354A states these as: 

A man committing any of the following acts—

   i.         physical contact and advances involving unwelcome and explicit sexual overtures; or

   ii.        a demand or request for sexual favours; or

   iii.       showing pornography against the will of a woman; or

   iv.       making sexually coloured remarks, shall be guilty of the offence of sexual harassment

 

If it helps, this is what constitutes as sexual harassment in the workplace.