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Renuka Shahane Supports Tanushree Dutta, Slams Nana Patekar & Team Of ‘Horn Ok Pleassss’

byPramit Chatterjee
29th September 2018
3 minute read

Bollywood has always been known to be a male-dominated society and proof of that can be found in its 100-year-long history. That’s why it was time the industry was shaken up to bring a sense of equality. And Tanushree Dutta has provided that opportunity by reminding us about the harassment she faced from Nana Patekar on the sets of ‘Horn Ok Pleassss’.

The initial reaction to it was mixed, with big names like Amitabh Bachchan and Salman Khan giving lacklustre responses. But soon after that, Tanushree Dutta has garnered a lot of support from celebs. Additionally, Janice Sequeira and the AD of ‘Horn Ok Pleassss’ has corroborated her story.

One more voice that’s joined this fight against workplace harassment is that of Renuka Shahane. And she voiced her opinion through a scathing Facebook post.

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“Nana Patekar is known as much for his volatile temper as he is for his phenomenal talent or his social service towards farmers. Many men & women from the film industry have faced his wrath. I have never worked with either Nana or Tanushree & neither was I a part of “Horn Ok Pleassss”. But there are some points in Tanushree’s story that resonate with me.“

Renuka then pointed out the basic rights that an actress has on a set and how easily the whole situation could’ve been handled without mistreating Tanushree.

“1) Tanushree made it clear that she was uncomfortable with a certain step in the dance and did not like Nana’s gesture/touch during that step. Even if Nana’s intentions might not have been to molest her, couldn’t he, the director and the choreographer come up with a step that made her feel comfortable? Is the work place meant for terrorising people or about working in a healthy atmosphere? Would the film have suffered earth shatteringly if the steps were changed so that an actor felt more comfortable? What made Tanushree uncomfortable might not cause discomfort to other women perhaps but that is no reason for the men on the set to gang up against a person who is part of their team. If she was truly the daughter of any of the men around would they have really asked her to do something that made her feel very uncomfortable or would they want to change the step? Shayad yehi fark hai “beti jaisi” or asli beti hone mein!

2) As if four full grown men weren’t enough against one girl, allegedly some members of a political party were called in to intimidate Tanushree and her parents! WTH!!! If that is not a huge overreaction then what is? Allegedly, the political party wanted Tanushree to apologise for hurting the “pride of Maharashtra”. Can you believe this? Would this behaviour, to force a girl uncomfortable with a dance step, really make Maharashtra proud? Isn’t the pride of Maharashtra enshrined in respecting women and making it safer for women to live life? Talk about ironies!

3) And now let’s come to the aftermath. Whose career did this incident affect? None of the men had a difficult time. Their ego had won! The men got all the support that any industry ( not just the film industry) gives to powerful men. The only person who was traumatized was Tanushree. The scars have still not healed. Please do the math.
P.S: A little birdie from the set told me that the great producer of that particular film had many legal issues about non payment of dues & even talk of being funded by the underworld. But hey hey hey thats okay I guess. He must have been impeccably honest. After all he was upholding the “pride of Maharashtra”! Right???”

In conclusion, Renuka provided some words of wisdom for the society and lauded Tanushree for her bravery.

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“There are small people( both men & women) with big egos in many places of power all over the world. When I see that too many people gang up against one person I consider that bullying cannot be right from any angle. It dehumanizes the victim! According to me Tanushree has been very brave, not the “victors” of that day!”

Although Nana Patekar has decided to take legal action against Tanushree and Farah Khan is posting happy pictures with him, there’s a wave of change that’s taking over Bollywood. And celebs and fans shouldn’t let it die down and allow it to cleanse the industry.

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