Niharika Singh shares her #MeToo account, calls out Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sajid Khan, Bhushan Kumar
Mumbai, Nov 10 : Former Miss India and actor Niharika Singh opened up about her #MeToo experiences in entertainment industry calling out Bollywood biggies Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sajid Khan and Bhushan Kumar.
The "Miss Lovely" actor's account was shared on Twitter by journalist Sandhya Mennon.
Niharika said she decided to write the piece "to expand my own understanding of what constitutes abuse, who we choose to punish and whom we are willing to forgive".
The actor said she has dealt with various forms of exploitation throughout her life and her main struggle started once she decided to move to Mumbai to make her name in the modelling and movie business.
Soon after her Miss India pageant win, Niharika said she was signed by Raj Kanwar for her Bollywood debut but the project got shelved and T-Series honcho Bhushan Kumar decided to launch her.
"Bhushan Kumar asked Kanwar to release me from his contract as a favour so I could be cast in his other film... Bhushan Kumar called me to his office to sign 'A New Love Ishtory' where he gave me an envelope as a signing amount for the film. It contained two 500 Rupee notes.
"I got a text from him later that night- 'I would love to know you more. Let's get together sometime'. I wrote back saying- 'Absolutely! Lets go on a double date. You bring your wife. I'll bring my boyfriend.' He never wrote to me again," she wrote.
The film got delayed and the actor claimed she never got paid for her work on the project.
In 2009, Niharika signed "Miss Lovely" opposite Nawazuddin Siddiqui. The actor wrote she and Nawazuddin came close during the making of the film and she developed a soft corner for him as she "found him real, after all the superficial 'filmy' interactions I'd had in the past years".
The actor revealed one morning she invited the "Manto" actor to her home for breakfast and he grabbed her.
"I tried to push him away but he wouldn't let go. After a little coercion, I finally gave in. I wasn't sure what to make of this relationship. He told me it was his dream to have a Miss India or an actress wife, just like Paresh Rawal and Manoj Bajpayee. I found his little confession funny but endearing...He often complained about how he was judged on his looks, skin colour and that he wasn't fluent in English. I tried to help him deal with his insecurities, but he was stuck in a state of victimisation."
The two started dating but according to Niharika she decided to split with Nawazuddin because of his frequent lies.
"I told him to clean up his mess, be honest with himself and everyone around him; also that I did not want to see him again."
Niharika and Nawazuddin met after three years when "Miss Lovely" got into the Cannes Film Festival in 2012. The actor said she wanted to be friends with him but "he tried to re-engage me sexually, begging me to be with him but I refused, saying I was happy to be his friend and nothing else".
In the post Niharika also called Nawazuddin a "sexually repressed Indian man whose toxic male entitlement grew with his success is hardly surprising. What is interesting to note that despite not identifying as a Hindu, he carries deep caste prejudices since he chose to protect the honour of his 'Brahmin' wife after their names came in CDR scam, while he felt very comfortable painting me as a seductress wearing faux fur in his book, who he could sexually exploit, for public imagination."
She blasted Nawazuddin's frequent collaborator, director Anurag Kashyap for continuously supporting him. Niharika also claimed that she was briefly engaged to Mayank Singh Singhvi in 2011, but parted ways because he "was a sociopath".
Mayank later got married to Anissia Batra, who worked with a German airline. She had allegedly jumped from the terrace of her house in July and Mayank was arrested on the charge of dowry death.
In September it was revealed that a former Miss India had approached Delhi Police and recorded her statement in the Anissia Batra case. In her statement, she had told police that she called off her engagement after he threatened her and chased her with a knife.
"Violence against women may be a common feature faced by all women in India, but there is no denying the fact that certain kinds of violence are customarily reserved solely for Dalit women," Niharika said.
She said patriarchy has no gender nor does abuse.
"We can't forget the role of mothers and wives who are equally responsible in covering or enabling their sons' and husbands' crimes... It's time to realize that the pompous, neoliberal, savarna feminism is not going to liberate anyone," she added.
Niharika concluded her post by sharing her encounter with Sajid, who was recently dropped as the director of "Housefull 4" following sexual harassment allegations by multiple women.
"Filmmaker Sajid Khan, who I met a couple of times while he was dating an actress I knew years ago, made a few predictions when a close friend of ours was opening her second restaurant - 'This place will shut down within a year, mark my words.' To his actress girlfriend he said, 'She won't survive a day without me in Bollywood'. 'And, this one', looking at me straight, 'will soon commit suicide'.
"My restaurateur friend is opening her fourth restaurant. It is difficult to get a table at the other three. The actress' career skyrocketed after she dumped the filmmaker and I, have managed to stay alive," she wrote.
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Ind vs Aus 1st test day 2: IND 172/0 at stumps, lead by 218 runs in Perth
Perth, Nov 23: Yashasvi Jaiswal combined game awareness with perfect shot selection while KL Rahul remained technically unflappable in an unbroken opening stand of 172 as India looked set to bat Australia out of the match with an overall lead of 218 runs on the second day of the opening Test here.
After skipper Jasprit Bumrah's game-changing 11th five-wicket haul decimated Australia for 104, young Jaiswal (90 batting, 193 balls) and seasoned Rahul (62 batting, 154 balls) decided to grind it out with some old fashioned Test match batting by waiting for the loose deliveries and respecting good fast bowling.
The Indians showed their compact defense by scoring 88 runs in 31 overs during the post-tea session as Jaiswal inched towards a coveted ton on his maiden outing on Australian soil.
With enough time at their disposal and signs of cracks appearing on the surface, this is going to be India's Test match to lose.
The way Rahul wore down the Australian attack was a sight to behold. There was no chatter from the slip cordon and at one point, the stitches of the Kookaburra came out.
The live grass died by the second afternoon and the seam movement also went out of equation making batting easier.
But no one can take away any credit from the two who were hardly troubled except for a mix-up that could have led to Rahul's run-out.
Jaiswal also showed that he had learnt his lessons from the first innings and curbed his urge to drive on the up initially, which was the best part about his batting. Each of his seven fours and two sixes were well-executed shots.
Once he had defended enough deliveries, the Australian pacers didn't have any option but to try either short or full length which he utilised well.
The whip over mid-wicket to hit Starc for one-bounce four and then induce a grin from the pacer by telling him "you are slow", spoke volumes about how fearless the current generation of Indian cricketers is.
In the final session, he flicked him for good measure for a maximum.
Rahul's back-drive off Pat Cummins can easily be called the shot of the match but it was heartening to see Jaiswal put in a big stride forward while driving Mitchell Starc through covers apart from getting under the bounce and playing the ramp shot.
In case of Rahul, he kept a very loose bottom-hand and that helped with the deliveries, even the ones that took the thickish edge only to fall way in front of the slip cordon.
There was a spell of play in the post-tea session when Indians were kept quiet by Nathan Lyon but neither Jaiswal nor Rahul ran out of patience. Jaiswal's half-century came off 123 balls, his slowest in 15 Tests and spoke volumes about his adaptability.
For Rahul, it was about forgetting the unfortunate dismissal on Friday and concentrate, which he did splendidly.
Any target above 300 would be very difficult to chase on this track and Washington Sundar can come into play if those cracks open up, not to forget the three quicks who can use the variable bounce to good effect.
In the morning, India captain Bumrah deservedly got his 11th five-wicket haul while debutant Harshit Rana bowled a fiery opening spell to dismiss the hosts for 104 at the stroke of lunch despite a stiff last-wicket resistance from Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.
Starc (26 off 113 balls) shielded Hazlewood (7 not out off 31 balls) admirably during their 25-run last-wicket stand that lasted 18 overs.
The day began with Bumrah (5/30 in 18 overs) getting one to rear up from back of the length and Carey's edge carried at a good height to Rishabh Pant behind stumps.
The skipper's celebration was understated as he purposefully strode back to his bowling mark even before Nathan Lyon had arrived. At the other end, the burly Harshit Rana (3/48 in 15.2 overs) carried on from where he had left off on the opening day.
The rookie speedster used more short balls, and one such well-directed delivery accounted for Lyon, who was pouched at gully by KL Rahul.
