Following the #MeToo storm that took India by the storm few weeks back, singer Sona Mohapatra has asked Delhi Government to withdraw the invitation to singer Kailash Kher for a concert in Delhi’s Mayur Vihar. In a petition to Delhi Government, Mohapatra has narrated her experience with Kher and accused him of sexually harassing her.
She alleges that Kher made her feel uncomfortable and made unwanted sexual advances towards her during the course of their professional relationship. Mohapatra further says that she is not the only one to have come forward with allegations against Kher. She says that multiple women including minors have come forward with their #MeToo stories against Kher and organising this concert would add insult to injury.
https://twitter.com/sonamohapatra/status/1073480924711608325?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
She expressed shock at Kher being asked to headline a performance at the Delhi Government’s Mayur Utsav which is scheduled on 16th December, Sunday.
Other than Mohapatra, many others have also raised their concerns against Delhi Government lending its name for a concert by someone who has been accused by multiple women of sexual harassment.
https://twitter.com/TheRestlessQuil/status/1073174587154751488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
However, there has been no communication from Delhi Government’s side yet.
Recently, many women and men had come out in the open to talk about their sexual harassment stories, many of which included big names in the media and film fraternity. As the #MeToo movement gained momentum in India starting with actor Tanushree Dutta accusing Nana Patekar of harassing her, incidents of harassment and sexual misconduct started coming out in the open, with allegations being levelled against many personalities in the media and entertainment industry, including Subhash Ghai, Vikas Bahl, Alok Nath, and Rajat Kapoor.
Union minister M J Akbar, comedians like Tanmay Bhat and Gursimran Khamba, co-founders of All India Bakchod were all accused of sexual misconduct. Notable filmmakers like Vikas Bahl, Sajid Khan and Journalists like Vinod Dua and Sidharth Bhatia of The Wire, Prashant Jha of the Hindustan Times have been accused. Filmmaker Sajid Khan was recently suspended from Indian Film and Television Directors’ Association over sexual harassment charges.