India #MeToo: Nawazuddin’s ex-lover calls him out

Former Miss India and actress Niharika Singh is the latest celebrity in Bollywood to come out and share her 'Me Too' ordeal on social media. Journalist Sandhya Menon brought forth her story through a series of tweets on 9 November. The Miss Lovely actress mentioned her ex-boyfriend and actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui, filmmaker Sajid Khan, and Bhushan Kumar in a long post.

From her modelling days to "harrowing experiences" with some men in the entertainment industry, Niharika Singh bared it all in her #MeToo story.

Referring to popular actor Nawauddin Siddiqui as a "sexually repressed Indian man", the actress narrated her experience with the actor and their relationship.

"One morning, when I was home and he had been shooting all night, Nowaz sent me a text saying he was near my building. I invited him over and asked him to come and have breakfast with me. When I opened the door, he grabbed me. 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," the post read.

"Nowaz had engaged multiple women, giving each one a different story; one of them even called me from his phone and started yelling at me. I also found out about a woman he'd married in Haldwani, whose family had sued him for making dowry demands," she added.

Mentioning Nawazuddin's memoir that was launched in 2017, which extensively talked about the Manto actor's journey and personal life, Niharika wrote that it was "a completely fabricated account of our relationship".

According to the former beauty pageant winner, Bhushan Kumar called him to sign a film and gave her an envelope as a signing amount. Later that night, she got a text from him which read, "I would love to know you more. Let's get together sometime."

To this, she had replied, "Absolutely! Lets go on a double date. You bring your wife. I'll bring my boyfriend." The filmmaker never wrote to her again.

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.

In her post, she also mentioned filmmaker Sajid Khan, who has been accused of sexual harassment by multiple women in the industry. Narrating a brief meeting with the Housefull director, she wrote, "Last but not the least, 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'."

India's #MeToo movement gained momentum after actress Tanushree Dutta accused veteran actor Nana Patekar of sexual misconduct during a film shoot. Following this incident, a lot of women in the industry and outside gained the courage speak up about being victims of sexual misconduct.

Copyright: The Statesman/ Asia News Network