Ajay Devgn had been vocal about lending his support to women who face harassment in the industry. But his recent statement has us confused.
In a recent interview with Filmfare, the Golmaal actor shed some light on what he thinks of the #MeToo movement and working with an accused harasser.
He stated, “There’s a difference between ‘accused’ and ‘proven guilty'. One must definitely not work with those proven guilty. But those who haven’t been, we can’t be unfair to them. What about their families? I know an ‘accused’ whose daughter was so traumatised, she stopped eating and going to school.”
Devgn fails to keep in mind how a woman is bashed for coming out with her story of assault and that many accused harassers get away with their heinous acts because they know they can get away with it. Every woman who has come forward with an allegation has been subjected to cyberbullying for their move.
After Alok Nath was accused of rape and sexual harassment by multiple women, Ajay Devgn found himself in the middle of the controversy for choosing to work with him in De De Pyaar De.
According to the 50-year-old actor, “When the entire #MeToo Movement happened, I, along with many of my film industry colleagues categorically expressed that I respect every single woman at the workplace and I would not stand for any unfairness or atrocity against them. Nothing about my stand has changed."
He further stated, “The decision to replace Mr Alok Nath could never have been mine alone. In this case, I would have to go with the joint-decision of the entire unit. Not to forget, I could not have brought the entire combination of actors back or put upsets again for a 40-day re-shoot because this would mean doubling the budget, which again wasn’t my call to make. It would have to be the call of the makers.”