What sexual harassment? Nana Patekar asks on Tanushree's #MeToo
Mumbai, Sep 27: Actor Nana Patekar on Thursday dismissed an accusation of sexual harassment by actress Tanushree Dutta, saying he may take legal action.
In his first response since the allegation re-emerged this week a decade after Tanushree had spoken out about it, Nana told Mirror Now: "What can I do about what one says? You tell me. What does it mean by sexual harassment?"
Tanushree, who had first raised the allegation against Nana in 2008, brought the spotlight once again on her unsavoury experience of working with the actor in the film "Horn 'Ok' Pleassss", through a recent interview.
Nana told Mirror Now: "We were on the set and there were 200 people sitting in front of us. What I can say?"
Asked if he will take any legal action, he said: "I will see what can be done legally. (When asked about any legal action) Let's see. It is also wrong/inappropriate to talk to you (media) since you publish anything."
On the allegation that there's a different face to the National Award-winning actor, Nana said: "Let anyone say anything. I will continue to do in my life what I have been doing."
Tanushree's allegation is being seen as one that is likely to kickstart Bollywood's own #MeToo movement.
She has hit out at Nana and named choreographer Ganesh Acharya, director Rakesh Sarang and producer Sami Siddiqui as accomplices in the harassment she faced.
Back in 2008, at a press conference to address the "indecent behaviour" allegation by Tanushree, Nana had said he was highly surprised at the charges by the actress, who he said was "my daughter's age".
On her part, the former beauty queen has said her voice was suppressed back then by Nana's powerful position.
Strong reactions from Bollywood are yet to emerge on the controversy.
In fact, Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan on Thursday dodged a question about the news, steering clear from the row.
At a film's trailer launch, a mediaperson asked the thespian and superstar Aamir Khan to share their views.
Big B said: "Naa toh mera naam Tanushree hai, naa hee Nana Patekar. Kaise uttar dun aapko iss sawaal ka? (Neither is my name Tanushree, nor is it Nana Patekar. How do I answer this question?)"
On the other hand, Aamir said: "Without knowing the veracity of something or the details of something, I don't think I can comment. It is not right for me. But I would like to say that whenever something like this does happen, it's really sad. Now if it has happened or not it is for people to investigate."
Actress Shruti Seth hopes Tanushree's moment of stepping out and naming and shaming "is the beginning of the end of sexual harassment in Bollywood".
"I hope more women find courage to call out their perpetrators. Bravo," she added.
Tanushree hopes her story gives "girls a sense of confidence to come out with their story if they are suffering".
"Back then, the mainstream media did not pursue the story as actively as it is happening in the present day. Now, it is the right time for all the victims to share their story," Tanushree said.
While a string of Bollywood celebrities, including filmmakers and actors have called out casting couch and sexual harassment in the industry, naming and shaming is yet to become a reality, even as Hollywood counterparts have remained outspoken ever since mass allegations against producer Harvey Weinstein came to light.
Comedian Bill Cosby has been sentenced upto 10 years in prison and has been branded a "sexually violent predator" by a US court for drugging and sexually assaulting a woman in 2004.
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
