I chose to speak about sexual abuse because I have been through it: Anurag Kashyap

Director stated that celebrities are not speaking about sexual abuse because they know it won't make a difference

Film-maker Anurag Kashyap has said that the reason why many celebrities don't speak up about sexual abuse is because they know their stance won't make a difference unless the victims come forward themselves, reported The Indian Express. 

The #MeToo movement that kick started in Hollywood late last year had actors sharing their personal experiences of sexual abuse. Rape complaints against producer Harvey Weinstein and the multiple harassment allegations in October 2017 were touted as a "watershed moment" in entertainment history.

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Without naming or shaming anyone, only a handful of Bollywood celebrities have spoken about sexual harassment in the industry. While Hollywood actors have named their abusers and now even the Pakistani industry is taking a stance, Indian cinema has chosen to stay silent. Thereby, inviting criticism from fans.

However, defending Bollywood, Kashyap explained that celebrities speaking up on the issue would not bring any good unless the actual victims of sexual harassment share their own stories.

In an interview, the 45-year-old director said, "A campaign like #MeToo will only be successful if the victim speaks up. If the victim won’t speak, then no one can because the others will be branded as disgruntled people trying to do rumour-mongering. It will be a total failure."

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Kashyap went on to slam the media saying that it's "obsessed with Bollywood" as sexual harassment exists everywhere. He claimed that  the entertainment industry should be lauded for being amongst the first to acknowledge the issue and talk about it.

The Dev D director added that the film fraternity is more courageous than any other as its members were the first to address the issue and bring it into limelight. When questioned if it's actually prevalent in in the industry, he replied that he couldn't offer an opinion on it as he does not know of any such cases.

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"When I was 19 years old, I spoke of sexual abuse because I have been through it. I talked about it when I had to - a long time ago," confessed Kashyap. The ace director earlier revealed that, as a child, he was sexually abused for 11 years by a 22-year-old man.

However, he had forgiven the man stating that he met him after many years and saw that his abuser was "guilt-ridden." Kashyap said, "I decided to put the nightmare behind me and move on but it wasn't easy. I came to Mumbai brimming with angst, bitterness and a sense of isolation."

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Speaking of the incident and sexual abuse, the Gangs of Wasseypur director mentioned that he had discussed the matter on Aamir Khan's show. Although, he added, "Now, I don't talk about it because nobody cares about the movement. Everybody cares about the headline."



This article originally appeared on The Indian Express.

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