Renuka Shahane on Me Too!

In 2018, a number of women bravely came forward with their stories of sexual harassment and assault, sparking the MeToo movement. Renuka Shahane recently spoke out about the MeToo movement and why it was so crucial. She also discussed how things have changed since the movement began and whether or not speaking her mind has cost her a job.

She was recently asked if she was told not to speak up Renuka replied, “Arey, many people! In fact, 'mat bolo' is something that women are told so often from childhood. I feel catharsis is necessary. MeToo was very important because if not anything else, that collective feeling of catharsis that a lot of women went through for what they had gone through maybe 10 years, 25 years ago. People say 'why after 25 years?' Arey aap bolne kab dete ho? Maximum abuse happens within families and if a child- whether a boy or a girl- tells the parents, how many parents are willing to give up on their elders or family relationships on the basis of what the child has said? So I think it starts from there.”

She further added that complaints are taken seriously now. “I think all our unions are very active about that. If there’s any complaint of any sort, it's taken seriously. It's heard. For example, in CINTAA (Cine and TV Artistes Association), we are very particular about it. We know that if there is any problem that we are going to face, CINTAA will stand by us. They will also help in terms of lawyer allotment. These are things that we don't know. So that's something where the association helps out. And our committee has really been very active about it.”