Pawan Singh and Anjali Raghav controversy: Why it shouldn’t take a viral Video for women to be heard

Dubai: When Bhojpuri actor and MP Pawan Singh inappropriately touched actress Anjali Raghav on stage at a promotional event in Lucknow, the crowd cheered.

She laughed it off, visibly uncomfortable, while his fans exalted him as if he could do no wrong. The swagger was clear — “boys will be boys” — until the video went viral. Only then did the outrage pour in, and only then did Anjali find the space to speak up.

And that’s the bigger issue. Why must it always take a public outcry for women’s discomfort to matter? Why does a woman’s pain have to trend before it’s acknowledged?

We’ve seen this before. Remember when Deepika Padukone publicly called out a leading Indian daily for zooming their cameras straight at her cleavage, reducing her to body parts instead of respecting her as an actor?

That act of defiance was powerful not because it was rare — but because it was rare for a woman of her stature to say, enough. And let’s not forget, Deepika’s stance was met with mockery by many who accused her of overreacting. That is exactly how systemic dismissal works — society teaches women to laugh it off, stay silent, and move on.

Anjali’s situation mirrors the same imbalance. She admitted she was disturbed, angry, and helpless — surrounded by a fanbase that treated Singh like a demi-god, even as she was violated in plain sight.

It takes extraordinary courage to speak up when an entire crowd cheers your humiliation.

Yes, Singh apologised. Yes, Anjali “forgave” him. But forgiveness is not consent, and an apology is not accountability.

Let’s not pretend the matter is closed. Anjali’s decision to walk away from the Bhojpuri industry is a damning statement on a culture that normalises harassment and forces women to exit rather than thrive.

This is the same culture that cheers when men swagger and shrugs when women flinch. A culture where it takes a viral clip, a trending hashtag, or a superstar’s bold clapback to make the issue visible. And each time, the woman has to relive her humiliation in the spotlight just to be heard.

The bottom line? A woman’s discomfort should be enough. Her “no” should be enough. Her boundaries should be enough. Until industries — and audiences — start respecting that, we’ll keep replaying the same tired drama: men misbehave, women pay the price, and only public outrage tips the scales.

And that, truly, is shameful.