Nandita To Support #MeToo Movement Despite Sexual Slur Against Father

Mumbai: Unfazed by the disturbing sexual harassment charge against her father, noted painter Jatin Das, actor-director Nandita Das has said she will continue to lend support to the #MeToo movement.

“As a strong supporter of the #MeToo movement, I want to reiterate that I will continue to add my voice to it, despite the disturbing allegations made against my father, which he has categorically denied,” Nandita said in her Facebook post.

“I have maintained from the very start that this is the time we all need to listen, so that women (and men) feel safe to speak up. At the same time, it is also important to be sure about the allegations so as not to dilute the movement,” she added.

Maintaining that she would continue to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the women coming forward with stories of abuse and harassment, Nandita, however, said that the women need to be sure about their allegations before accusing someone.

The famous painter and Padma Bhushan awardee has been accused of sexual assault by his former assistant, Nisha Bora.

In a detailed Twitter post, Nisha Bora has explained about how she met Jatin Das through her family at an event at the India International Centre, Delhi in 2004. The acclaimed painter approached her to assist him in his work.

Following this, she met him at his studio, where he tried groping her and kissing her forcefully.

She wrote, “I visited Jatin in his studio, in Delhi’s Khirki Village. I don’t recall the time of the day, but it was well within daylight hours. He poured some whiskey for himself and offered me too, but I refused. The next thing I knew, he attempted to grab me. I wriggled out of his embrace, flustered. Then he did it again. This time, he managed a clumsy kiss on my lips. I recall the feeling of his beard on my skin. I pushed him and moved away from him. At that moment, he said, “Come on, it would be nice” or something like that. What I recall clearly was his disbelief that I was pushing him back.”

Terming the allegations against him as vulgar, the Padma Bhushan awardee said these days a ‘game’ is on to level allegations against people for the fun of it.

“I am shocked. All kinds of things are happening these days. Some people do things and some people make allegations. I don’t know her, I have never met her and even if I did meet somebody, somewhere, one doesn’t behave like this. It is vulgar,” Jatin Das told the media.