Celebrities including Taapsee Pannu, Anubhav Sinha, Tisca Chopra, and Surveen Chawla have come forward to support filmmaker Anurag Kashyap in the wake of Payal Ghosh’s allegations of sexual harassment.
Taking to his Twitter account on Saturday, Ghosh,30, accused the Gangs of Wasseypur director of being sexually inappropriate towards her, an allegation Kashyap deemed “baseless.” The alleger went as far as tagging Prime Minister Narendra Modi in her tweet, urging him to intervene and take action against the filmmaker.
Pannu took to her Instagram account, describing Kashyap, whom she had collaborated with on the romantic-drama dubbed Manmarziyaan in 2018, as “the biggest feminist” she knew. “For you, my friend, are the biggest feminist I know,” she wrote.
For you, my friend , are the biggest feminist I know.
See you on the sets soon of yet another piece of art that shows how powerful and significant women are in the world you create 🙂 ? https://t.co/M9AgMDHTPH— taapsee pannu (@taapsee) September 20, 2020
See you on the sets soon of yet another piece of art that shows how powerful and significant women are in the world you create,” the Thappad star added. Sinha noted that the #MeToo movement exists to help harassed women open up about their experiences and seek help, rather than misusing it to defame someone.
It is the joint responsibility of women and men both to carefully protect the sanctity of #Metooindia,” Sinha tweeted. “It is a very very very important movement that should not be misused for any other reason but the dignity of women,” he wrote, tagging Kashyap.
Chawla, who had teamed up with the filmmaker on his Netflix series dubbed Sacred Games said the allegations against the director look like a case of “opportunism.” “Let them creep. Let them crawl. You my friend, as always stand tall,” Chawla tweeted.
These false flag bearers of feminism… Opportunism? They don’t honor men like you. For their lack of knowledge in knowing know who you really are, and claims they make, that are just so bizarre,” she added. In a subsequent tweet, she said Kashyap”s legacy is stronger than the allegations.
Your life, your work, and the women you create with your craft…speak volumes about you. I have the privilege to know the real feminist in you, I take the honor my friend to stand for you! @anuragkashyap72,” she wrote.
Making her appearance alongside the filmmaker and Chawla in the short film Chhuri, Chopra touted Kashyap as one of the biggest supporters of talent, regardless of gender. “To know my friend @anuragkashyap72 is to know generosity, honesty, and decency at its core .. even a cursory look at his work reveals his worldview on women .. don’t know a bigger supporter of talent, men or women,” she tweeted.
In a series of tweets over the weekend, Kashyap, 48, denied the allegations, calling it an attempt to “silence” him. He hasn’t shied away from talking about the criticism and vilification of Bollywood by online trollers and celebrities.
“Such a long time was taken to shut me up, never mind. (But) while shutting me up, you lied so much that you dragged other women also in it. Please maintain some dignity madam. All I will say is that all your allegations are baseless,” he tweeted.
Post the allegations, Kashyap found support in NCW (National Commission for Women) with its chairperson Rekha Sharma assuring the director that the Indian commission will take the cognizance of the case. However, Kangana Ranaut has a completely different take on the director and asked for his arrest. For more updates, keep watching this space.
