With smartphones and the internet on almost all handhelds, everyone is empowered these days. Whatever you need to open up about, you need not to go anywhere else. #MeToo movement is one such example of empowerment. Since the advent of this online movement, names of many celebrities have come out in the open who have, at one point, been a perpetrator of sexual harassment. (Also Read: Vicky Kaushal On His Rumoured Girlfriend, Harleen Sethi's Web Series, Calls Her 'Anmol Ratan')
And one such celebrity is Chetan Bhagat who has been accused of sexually harassing a woman. Recently, a woman took to Twitter and shared a few screenshots of her WhatsApp conversation with Mr Bhagat. The tweet claimed that he knew her only in ‘professional capacity.’ Take a look at the screenshots below and see for yourself how he tried to woo her:
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Now, in his first public appearance (in a literary fest organised by Aaj Tak) post the allegations against him, Chetan Bhagat revealed that it’s ‘the toughest time of his life’. He even went on to share that he asked his wife Anusha Bhagat to leave him after sexual harassment charges against him. Not only that, the Half-Girlfriend author further compared his marital equation with Shiva and Parvati in which the latter had supported her husband through the toughest times. The 44-year-old author said, “It was very tough for my family. I am used to the trolls on the Internet. My wife is more of a private person, and I felt that she was breaking down.”
Earlier, after the above screenshots surfaced online, it went viral on social media like how. A few days later, Chetan Bhagat released a statement on his Facebook handle which went like this, “Dear All, I would like to make a couple of points about the screenshots that someone has shared just a couple of hours ago. It has taken me this much time because I saw them a bit late, and then I was in a conversation with Anusha. I am telling you all whatever I told her, which to my recollection is the truth. But first of all, I am really sorry to person concerned. The screenshots, are of course real, and I am sorry if you felt they were wrong I hope you will accept my apology.”
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It went on, “Just in terms of more information, these screenshots are several years old, and I had met the person in question a couple of times. We hit it off really well as a friendship, and as I say in the screenshots, I did feel a strong connection with her. I did find her a good human being, sweet, cute and funny (as I also say in the screenshots).” (You May Like: Neha Dhupia And Angad Bedi Choose A Persian Name For Their Baby Girl, It Means 'Blessing')
And his apology could further be read as, "As I also say in the screenshots, I realized I was married and this was not about looking for any action. I just had not felt that kind of connection in a while. Maybe I was going through a phase, maybe these things just happen, or maybe I felt the person felt the same too based on our conversations (which I don’t need to repeat here). However, it was stupid of me, to feel that way and to even share that with her. I just told Anusha about it as well, and apologized to her for doing the same. I should have had better judgement, but I guess I erred a bit there. Maybe I misread the friendliness. Also, I am not completely sure because it was long ago, but the ‘wooing’ bit may have come from a conversation we had about how nobody woos anyone anymore and how sometimes one misses being wooed. My new book then was also about women (One Indian Girl) and we also discussed wooing and relationships in that context".
And lastly he had added, “Also, I also want to clarify that there never was anything physical, no lewd pictures or words that were ever exchanged. I think I deleted the person’s number soon thereafter and we haven’t been in touch for years. We do feel certain things sometimes, and I did too. I found this person special, and different from all others I had met. I shouldn’t have, and maybe I shouldn’t have shared it with that person in a private conversation either. Once again, I am sorry to the person concerned, and of course most of all to Anusha. I hope you can forgive me. For everyone’s information, am running this response past Anusha first, to ensure she is okay with it.” (Don't Miss: Kritika Kamra Rubbishes The Rumours Of Her Engagement With Long-Time Beau Uday Singh Gauri)
Earlier, even author Ira Trivedi had charged Chetan for sexual misconduct. To defend himself, he shared a screenshot of a 'self-explanatory' mail which apparently Trivedi sent to him in 2013. "So who wanted to kiss whom’", wrote Bhagat, adding, "@iratrivedi's self-explanatory email from 2013 to me, especially last line, easily shows her claims from 2010 are false, and she knows this too. This mental harassment of me and my family has to stop. Please don't harm a movement with #fakecharges #harassed
Well, it’s shocking to learn that Mr Bhagat asked his wife to leave him, right? We hope justice is done soon.
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