Sonam Kapoor on Sunday slammed filmmaker Vikas Bahl who has been accused of sexual harassment by a former employee of Phantom Films. However, the way she picked some words while reacting to Kangana Ranaut’s experience of working with the Queen director, hasn’t gone down well with the Manikarnika star.
Sonam Kapoor had spoken in-depth about the current MeToo movement in Bollywood at the Vogue We the Women summit in Bengaluru over the weekend. While talking about the Vikas Bahl sexual harassment case, Sonam said, “I think Kangana wrote something. Kangana is obviously Kangana Ranaut.
She says a lot of stuff and sometimes it is hard to take her seriously. I love the fact that she has spunk and she says what she believes. I really respect her for that. I don’t know him, I don’t know the situation. If what is written is true, then it’s disgusting and awful. If it’s true, then they should be punished for it.”
Sonam here was referring to Kangna’s experience of working with Vikas in Queen. Kangana had earlier said, “Every time we met, socially greeted and hugged each other, he (Vikas) would bury his face in my neck, hold me really tight and breathe in the smell of my hair. It took me a great amount of strength and effort to pull myself out of his embrace. He’d say ‘I love how you smell K’. I could tell something is wrong with him.”
@sonamakapoor on Bollywood's #MeToo movement at #WeTheWomen #Bengaluru pic.twitter.com/8Oohi3vyNi
— barkha dutt (@BDUTT) October 7, 2018
Sonam has posted a rebuttal on Instagram blaming "irresponsible media" who, she says, have "misquoted (her) or taken (her) quote out of context and made other women react." Presumably, she means Kangana, whom she doesn't name.
She was responding to Sonam Kapoor's comments about Vikas Bahl, who has been 'named and shamed' for allegedly assaulting a woman in 2015, details of which were revealed in a Huffington Post India expose on Saturday shortly after Vikas Bahl's business partner Anurag Kashyap announced that their company Phantom Films was being disbanded.
Kangana, who says Vikas Bahl would 'bury his face in (her) neck, hold (her) really tight" when they met socially, is furious. She might have a point when she says this: "So Sonam Kapoor has the license of trusting some women and some she won't."
In her tweet supporting Tanushree Dutta's allegation of sexual harassment against Nana Patekar, Sonam cited an eyewitness account by journalist Janice Sequeira and said she believed her account because the two women were friends - the unsaid implication being that Sonam believed not only Tanushree, the survivor of the alleged harassment, but the eyewitness because of the friendship they shared.
"I believe #TanushreeDatta and @janiceseq85 recollection of the account. Janice is my friend, and she is anything but an exaggerator or a liar. And it's upto us to stand together," Sonam tweeted.
I believe #TanushreeDatta and @janiceseq85 recollection of the account. Janice is my friend, and she is anything but an exaggerator or a liar. And it’s upto us to stand together. https://t.co/sF3mS5o1P8
— Sonam K Ahuja (@sonamakapoor) September 28, 2018
"What makes her so unsure of my claims, I am known to be an articulate person, I have represented my country in many international summits, I am called as a thought and youth influencer to these summits, I am not known because of my dad I have earned my place and credibility after struggling for a decade," Kangana Ranaut's statement read.
Kangana Ranaut, who is on agreeable terms with the Kapoors and had also attended Sonam and Anand Ahuja's reception in June, added: "She (Sonam Kapoor) isn't known to be a great actress, neither she has the reputation of being an good speaker. What gives these filmy people right to take digs at me? I will demolish each one of them."
Sonam Kapoor's Instagram response:
