Let us stay true to the #MeToo movement

Anurag Kashyap

After a brief lull, the #MeToo movement is back in the news, after an actor accused a director of sexual harassment. As if Bollywood needed even more controversy, the accusation has garnered tremendous attention and created new schisms within, compounding bad news for an industry that is going through a very rocky phase right now.

Leaving all that aside - and the movement often gets derailed when characters involved are the famous - we think it is important to stay true to the movement.
It does not matter as much whether the persons are celebrities, though it is true that they will garner more attention - what we must see is that the movement and its aims are followed.

#MeToo means calling out the person who has harassed you. It has a sexual component. It means saying that it has happened not just to somebody else but to you too. It is a very real occurrence.

Sometimes, the most unlikely persons are the offenders though this does not have a type. At times it is somebody famous, at times it is not. People have another persona in public and one that some people may not be aware of, in private. It has a power balance at the core.

It may not always be a man harassing a woman, though that is the case here. Not all cases are the same as very often, power is involved. Many of those doing the calling out may do so after years, but that does not automatically make it a falsehood. It is time to speak up, that is what the #MeToo movement said.

Let us keep it credible, let us keep it true and stay extremely relevant. This is a life-changing movement, one that has its basis in justice, equality and dignity. Stay true to the core of #MeToo.

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