As the #MeToo movement continues to grow strong in India, several names of Bollywood’s bigwigs are slowly finding their way into the list of allegations flooding the internet.
Recently, in an anonymous account shared on Twitter, a woman accused filmmaker Subhash Ghai of drugging and raping her. Writer Mahima Kukreja, who posted screenshots of her conversation with the alleged victim, described the latter as a “credible media/lit personality”. The alleged victim said that she was working with Ghai on a film at the time of the incident and the director took her under his wing. One day, she says the director called her for a scripting session at his “thinking pad”.
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TW: drugging and raping. About Shubash Ghai. Told personally by the woman who faced the trauma. She’s also a very credible media/lit personality. (2/2) pic.twitter.com/YVMRZSpQc6
— Mahima Kukreja (@AGirlOfHerWords) October 11, 2018
However, she said, “Instead of the scripting session, he started talking about how he was so misunderstood in the industry and only I was the one who loved him. He pretended to weep and put his head in my lap. Then when he kissed me forcefully.” She claimed that the next day, Ghai told her that “lovers have tiffs”. Despite feeling shocked, she says never took action against it out of fear of losing her job.
Some days later, Ghai offered her a spiked drink as she traveled in his car, taking her to Fariyas hotel in Lonavala. “I was wobbly, but he held me and took me to the suite. He took off my jeans and mounted me. I was trying to scream, but he put his hand over my mouth,” she said adding that she “cried and passed out”. She resigned from her job soon after.
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However, Ghai denied the allegations saying that he has only been respectful towards women in the workplace. He told PTI, “It is sad that it is becoming a fashion to malign anyone known, bringing some stories from the past without any truth or blown up false allegations if all. I deny strictly and firmly all false allegations like these.” He added, “If she claims this way, she should go to the court of law and prove it. Justice will be done or I will go for defamation certainly.”
He also tweeted:
Destiny shows u good times bad times-I m deeply pained 2b gripped in this movement but thank those who know me n my respect I shower to women n their dignity in spite of our cosmetic world we live n react more thru our love affection n respect Now seen in different perspectives
— Subhash Ghai (@SubhashGhai1) October 12, 2018