 "Amid Hema Committee row, Rituparna Sengupta reveals she faced sexual harassment in her initial days of career: 'I didn’t come from a film family, so...'")
Popular Bengali actress Rituparna Sengupta, who also worked in Bollywood films, recently took to the streets and protested along with Parambrata Chattopadhyay and Dev Adhikari against the RG Kar rape-murder case that happened earlier this month as a part of the West Bengal Motion Picture Artists’ Forum on the need for women’s safety at the workplace.
After that, the Women’s Forum for Screen Workers in the Bangla film industry issued a charter demand for the dignity of women in the workplace, which was signed by 50 actors and technicians including Rituparna , Aparna Sen, Swastika Mukherjee and Paoli Dam, among others.
Talking about the situation, Rituparna told News 18, “The Kolkata rape-murder case is an eye-opener to institutional and organised crime. We’re all very sad, depressed and infuriated at the same time. I feel so confused right now. Everything is so topsy-turvy. For how long will we live with this terror? Educated men are using their power and position as a weapon and are professing sexual misconduct.”
“We spend most of our time at our workplace. If we don’t feel safe there, how will we continue to work? Many women don’t speak up because they’re scared of losing work. That’s why I’m saying that all this needs to stop. There are so many avenues available to men where they can engage in consensual encounters,” she added.
The actress revealed that she also faced sexual harassment in the initial days of her career. “I did face it but I braved it all. I didn’t know much about the movies. I didn’t come from a film family. So, I took everything that I faced as a challenge. My perspective on things were different. But yes, I definitely faced a lot,” recalled Sengupta adding, “The environment that I came from had put me in a different footing. I’ve always done things my way. I never gave into doing things I didn’t want to. That might have damaged my career in a way and didn’t give me the kind of visibility and attention that I should’ve received. But I’m not bothered.”
“I stuck to my right to dignity and that’s all that mattered. I didn’t compromise just for the sake of fame and positioning. I had to manage my career and my home and set an example for my children. I could’ve surrendered to a big name but that would mean that I’m belittling myself. I was never ready to tarnish my image in my own eyes,” added the actress.