Sonam Kapoor’s Brutal Truth About Sexual Harassment Is An Important Reminder About Speaking Up

By Sarah Babar | 1 Feb, 2018

Sonam Kapoor is one of the most recognizable faces on both sides of the Pakistani-India border. She’s an actress and a style icon. She’s always said what’s on her mind, and she’s always been unapologetic about it. With the recent increase in sexual harassment allegations coming out against known names, there has been constant conversations and speculations about whose name will come up next. In a recent interview with BBC Asia, Sonam spoke up about why celebrities are so hesitant in naming those who have mistreated them.

 

 

She spoke about how women don’t realize what’s going on and what’s happening to them

Source: thefrontierpost.com

That most of the time they think it’s okay and whatever is happening to them is alright. Because that’s how desis have been conditioned to think. That it’s a subconscious thing for a lot of people to not speak up for themselves, regardless of what’s going on

 

 

Secondly, she said that women, especially, have been taught to keep quiet, have their heads down, and act dumb

Source: stylecraze.com

That they should pretend like nothing ever happened and to laugh everything off. Women need to keep up their facades of not knowing much.

 

 

The third thing she brought up was victim blaming

Source: brecorder.com

In desi society, if something happens to you, it’s your fault. When asked if there is still a big stigma around victims of sexual harassment and abuse or that actors and actresses are afraid of losing their careers over outing someone who is in the industry, as well, Sonam said that it went both ways. That not only is it about the fear of losing your career, it’s also about losing face in society. Which also ties up with victim blaming. That in a society like ours, that’s still backwards, we don’t talk about sex, let alone sexual harassment.

 

 

The sexual allegations against Aziz Ansari in “Babe” were brought into context

Source: masala.com

 

Haroon Rashid, from BBC Asia, asked her whether the Aziz Ansari allegations were just and that whether it was a fair calling out. Or has it all turned into a ‘witch hunt’. Sonam was extremely offended by the term and said that it’s awful that it’s being called a ‘witch hunt’.

 

Source: nytimes.com

 

That the whole issue stems from the fact that nothing is being talked about and that there is a ‘deafening silence’ all around. Once the dam breaks, then everything comes out. But the truth will always find its way to the surface. And eventually, it will all level out.

 

It’s extremely important that celebrities speak up against sexual harassment and everything that goes with it. We’ve had amazing women like Nadia Jamil and Frieha Altaf come out with their instances of sexual harassment. This is a debate that needs to be going on constantly. And the more it’s spoken about, the lesser it is!

You can watch the whole clip here

 

Actress Nadia Jamil Sharing Her Experience Of Being Abused Is Encouraging Others To Come Forward

 

15 Powerful Lessons Saba Qamar Wants Pakistan To Learn After Zainab’s Tragedy


Cover image via freehdw.com

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