Raveena Tandon says women in Bollywood face harassment: ‘I have seen it’
Actress was speaking at the Call It Out Conclave in New Delhi
Bollywood actress Raveena Tandon shared her thoughts on harassment in the movie industry while at the Call It Out Conclave in New Delhi.
“Women face some form of harassment in every industry. In our industry as well, there is harassment and I have seen it,” she said. “Also, harassment is different at different levels. The glamour of the film industry attracts many women from across the world. They live alone and struggle in Mumbai to make it big in Bollywood. They are most susceptible to harassment as people try to take advantage of the fact that they don’t have any background or standing in the industry.”
Tandon added: “Things have changed especially after the #MeToo movement. Such people are scared to indulge in harassment. Also, industry people are now more aware and sensitive about the issue of women safety. Women are encouraged to speak out against harassment.”
A number of speakers were at the event to raise awareness about why it’s important for women to ‘Call It Out’ on harassment issues.
Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, said the Indian government is toying with the idea of ushering in a legislative framework that will make social media platforms and intermediaries more accountable.
“A lot of people indulge in harassment and trolling online because they think there are no consequences for their actions. They think that they can abuse or harass anyone and will get away because there is a notion that no laws apply to cyberspace,” he said.
“Right now, social media platforms and intermediaries are treated as safe haven. But soon we will bring in a legislature under which they will be treated as publishers. Down the road, we will create a reporting structure in which they mandatorily will have to take action against reported misconduct or harassment. This will make it easier to identify and punish those who are committing online crimes. Social media platforms and intermediaries will have to take more responsibility to make the Internet safe,” he added.
He, however, clarified that the government wants the Internet to be open and not controlled by the state or big corporations, but it must be safe and trusted as well.