Me Too movement: Dia Mirza supports journalist who accused Sajid Khan of sexual harassment

With the sexual harassment and assault allegations against filmmaker Sajid Khan (and other Bollywood men) coming to light, more women are adding their voice to the #MeToo movement and speaking out in support of the accusers.

The ongoing avalanche of sexual assault claims being made against men in the entertainment industry, including filmmakers Subhash Ghai and Vikas Bahl, actors Rajat Kapoor and Alok Nath, comedians Gursimran Khamba and Utsav Chakraborty, have led to more women calling out sexism and sexual misconduct. Actor Dia Mirza is one of them. Dia has used her social media platforms to address many causes over the years, especially those concerning the environment. Now, she has chimed in against sexual harassment of women.  

On Friday, Dia shared journalist Karishma Upadhyay’s tweet about suffering sexual abuse from Sajid Khan. Showing her support for the Time’s Up and #MeToo movement, which aim to end sexual discrimination and harassment, Dia wrote, “I am so sorry you had to go through this @karishmau. With you in support. #MeToo” as she shared Karishma’s post. Dia made an appearance in a song from Sajid Khan’s 2007 comedy film, Heyy Babyy.

On Thursday, Karishma used the #MeToo hashtag and narrated her tale of sexual harassment by Sajid, who flashed his penis at her during the course of an interview. She wrote: “The first time I interviewed Sajid Khan in the early 2000s, he called me to the house he shared w/ his sister. Thru the interview he talked about how large his penis is & how he knew how to satisfy a woman.”

The #MeToo movement in India started with actor Tanushree Dutta accusing actor Nana Patekar of sexual harassment during the shooting of Horn OK Pleassss in 2008. But soon, personal stories began pouring in from women in other industries, such as journalism, and the hashtag #MeToo India became a rallying cry against sexual assault and harassment.

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