Ram Gopal Varma has tweeted extending support to filmmaker Anurag Kashyap, who currently faces sexual harassment allegations from upcoming actress Payal Ghosh. Several Bollywood celebs like Swara Bhasker, Hansal Mehta, Nikhil Dwivedi, Surveen Chawla, Irrfan's son Babil Khan, lyricist Garima Obrah, Anjana Sukhani, Marathi actor Siddharth Menon and others stood up for Anurag.
"The @anuragkashyap72 i know is a highly sensitive and emotional person and I never ever saw or heard about him hurting anyone in all of the 20 years that I have known him ..So I frankly can't picture what's happening now," Varma tweeted on Monday. Varma's tweet comes at a time Kashyap has been named in #metoo allegation by Patel Ki Punjabi Shaadi actress Payal Ghosh.
I was articulating my own views. #AnuragKashyap sees me as pro-establishment whch I cud b or not but our political views absolutely dn't match. He is outspoken &at times out of line &unnecessarily suspcious of Govt. But these charges against him most certainly seem false & fishy https://t.co/b39I0qrbWD
— Nikhil Dwivedi (@Nikhil_Dwivedi) September 20, 2020
Ever since Payal levelled her charges, Kashyap has received support from several other Bollywood colleagues including filmmakers Hansal Mehta, Vasan Bala and Anubhav Sinha. His ex-wives Aarti Bajaj and Kalki Koechlin have stood by him as have actresses Taapsee Pannu, Tisca Chopra.
Nikhil Dwivedi also lent his support to Anurag. Check out the tweets of Swara, Surveen, Nikhil, Hansal, Garima, Siddharth below:
I was articulating my own views. #AnuragKashyap sees me as pro-establishment whch I cud b or not but our political views absolutely dn't match. He is outspoken &at times out of line &unnecessarily suspcious of Govt. But these charges against him most certainly seem false & fishy https://t.co/b39I0qrbWD
— Nikhil Dwivedi (@Nikhil_Dwivedi) September 20, 2020
Ur life,ur work and the women u create with ur craft...speak volumes about u.I have the priveledge to know the real feminist in u,
I take the honour my friend to stand for u! @anuragkashyap72— Surveen (@SurveenChawla) September 20, 2020
Let them creep
Let them crawl
U my friend
As always stand tall
These false flag bearers of feminism....
Opportunism???
They dont honour men like u,
For their lack of knowledge in knowing know who u really are,
And claims they make,that are just so bizarre!@anuragkashyap72— Surveen (@SurveenChawla) September 20, 2020
@anuragkashyap72 was my 1st producer.. and there was a time when he stood for me and left me so so empowered..iv seen him do this to others as well.. anurag sir my full support to you.. love ♥
— Siddharth Menon (@sidmenon1) September 20, 2020
This is the kind of sexist bullshit that those claiming to support a latest alleged #MeToo accusation, are propagating and espousing.. Misogyny comes in many forms.. https://t.co/6izotYKR5A
— Swara Bhasker (@ReallySwara) September 20, 2020
Hansal Mehta wrote a series of tweets about Anurag and said that he was always rebellious and forthright but can't be a sexual harasser. Check out his tweets below:
1/ i've known @anuragkashyap72 since 1996. he was always rebellious. he was always outspoken. he was always passionate about cinema and his friendships. he had a point of view and i often disagreed with it. that did not change our relationship. in 24 years nothing has changed.
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) September 20, 2020
2/ i take accusations of sexual harassment seriously and when i heard this young woman accuse anurag i was extremely disturbed. he is a friend, like a younger sibling and somebody who has been with me through some rough times. he can be brash. he can be stupid.
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) September 20, 2020
3/ but sexual harasser is something i dont want to believe about him. as I write this I'm pained, troubled and full of questions. for one the timing of leveling these accusations. then the tagging of our hon'ble PM.
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) September 20, 2020
3/ but sexual harasser is something i dont want to believe about him. as I write this I'm pained, troubled and full of questions. for one the timing of leveling these accusations. then the tagging of our hon'ble PM.
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) September 20, 2020
5/ is this a witch-hunt yet again? are they trying to shut up an artist with a dissenting opinion? where are we headed? and then after hearing the accusation - can this even be anurag? it is definitely not the anurag I know. but...
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) September 20, 2020
6/ ultimately truth must prevail. lies and falsities in such a matter will be a huge disservice to many women out there who are regularly subjected to sexual harassment and abuse (something Anurag has vociferously fought against) and are unable to raise their voices.
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) September 20, 2020
7/ for their sake and for the sake of punishing every sexual predator out there i hope truth prevails above all other petty agenda and momentary social media gratification. the #metoo movement is way too important. let every victim out there always be heard and justice be done.
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) September 20, 2020
8/ but in the process let there be no injustice to those who are merely targets of vendetta and vested interests. let the #metoo movement itself not become a target of abuse for somebody's selfish gains. I am still troubled as I write this. I do hope better sense prevails.
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) September 20, 2020
9/ @anuragkashyap72 i know you don't need my support, certification or validation. i know you are a tough cookie. but I had to write this nevertheless. this is not a letter of support. this is a plea for truth and for a just outcome. before the rabid tv anchors take over...
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) September 20, 2020
hopefully justice will be served through the law of the land, through the courts of our country. I urge both the complainant and Anurag to approach the court and ensure justice.
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) September 20, 2020
There is no way he would misbehave or harrass women ...no way @anuragkashyap72
— anjana sukhani (@anjanasukhani) September 20, 2020
Irrfan's son Babil took to Instagram to give support to Anurag. He shared a write-up and captioned it, "Chin up, Anurag sir. I know you all are gonna hate me for this but I’ve got to stand up when something feels wrong. What if the girl is right? Well then, it would break my heart to see that someone who I consider a great man was just a false conception, I am hanging on to my judgement, I will take responsibility if I’m wrong."
Mahie Gill also spoke about Anurag's demeanour to a leading daily and said, "I really don t want to get into this rut, there's already so much negativity happening around us. It is very easy to take names just because he launched us. All I want to say is that I have known Anurag for a long time now. We may not be in touch but I am sure Anurag can never ever speak like this about any of his actors. This is my statement and I don't want to speak any further on this.”
(Source: Twitter/Instagram/TOI)
