#MeToo in India: 14 powerful men accused of sexual misconduct

With India under the firm grasp of the #MeToo movement presently, numerous women from all walks of life have come out sharing stories of their abuse at the hands of powerful men from various backgrounds.

Here is a list of some of the prominent ones who landed in hot waters after #MeToo’s breakout in India.

1- Nana Patekar

Tanushree Dutta was the first to step out breaking silence about getting sexually harassed by Nana Patekar on the sets of Horn OK Please in 2008. Patekar addressed the claims stating that legal action will be taken against the ‘false accusations.’

2- Alok Nath

Actor Alok Nath was accused of sexually assaulting TV writer and director Vinta Nanda who also alleged that he also harassed actor Navneet Nishan as well. After Nanda, actors Sandhya Mridul and Deepika Amin along with one more women, stepped forward with their own accounts of enduring sexual misconduct at the hands of Nath. In response, Nath’s lawyer has stated that the actor will be filing a defamation suit against Nanda and Mridul.

3- Vikas Bahl

Director of acclaimed film Queen, Bahl was first accused by a female worker on the sets of his film in 2016 who had alleged that he insisted on dropping her off at her hotel room and harassed her in an intoxicated condition. After those allegations Kanagana Ranaut, lead actor of his film, stepped forward accusing Bahl of inappropriate behavior like ‘smelling her hair’ and ‘hugging her tightly.’ The accused has threatened of filing a defamation suit against Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane for speaking out about the case to the press.

4- Rajat Kapoor

A few women on Twitter stepped forward accusing actor and director Rajat Kapoor of sexual harassment. One of the accusers, a journalist alleged that Kapoor had gone on to ask her inappropriate questions while another claimed that he called her continuously from actor Saurabh Shukla’s phone adding that he had also asked her if she knew any vacant houses which later grasped the meaning of. Kapoor had later issued an apology for his inappropriate behavior.

5- Kailash Kher

The singer was accused of inappropriately touching a journalist when she went to interview him. Singer Sona Mohapatra along with another woman stepped forward accusing him of sexual harassment on several occasions. Kher also issued an apology following the allegations.

6- Karim Morani

Acclaimed Bollywood producer was accused of drugging, raping and threatening an aspirant actor who remained anonymous with her account. As of now, the issue remains unaddressed by the accused.

7- Sajid Khan

The Indian director came under fire after actors Saloni Chopra, Rachel White and Simran Suri along with journalist Karishma Upadhyayin shared their episodes of harassment at the hands of Khan.

8- Amitabh Bachchan

The veteran Bollywood star was accused by celebrity hairstylist Sapna Bhavnani asserting that his take on #MeToo is a lie with his ‘image of being an activist’ getting diminished soon.

9- MJ Akbar

The Minister of State for External Affairs was accused by a dozen female journalists of sexual harassment with him issuing his resignation today.

10- Abhijeet Bhattacharya

The Indian singer was accused of allegedly harassing a flight attendant at a pub in Kolkata to which he had replied: “Most of the fat and ugly girls are blaming and I wasn’t born at that time.”

11- Prashant Jha

The political editor and bureau chief at Hindustan Times had stepped down from both of his posts after he was accused of sexual harassment by another employee at the publication Avantika Mehta.

12- Babu Haabi

An anonymous accuser alleged the singer-rapper of harassment and rape. The accusations were later refuted by Haabi.

13- Gursimran Khamba

Indian comedian from All India Bakchod was accused by an unidentified woman of forcefully kissing a woman as well as emotional abuse. While Khamba admitted to his toxic behavior, the harassment allegations were turned down by him. He was also temporarily suspended from AIB.

14- Chetan Bhagat

Indian writer was faced with accusations by multiple women of him sending inappropriate messages. He later apologized for the ‘flirtatious exchnage’ while denying other allegations.