New Delhi:
The gruesome rape and murder of 31-year-old Moumita Debnath, a trainee doctor from Kolkata, has shaken the country. Bollywood stars like Alia Bhatt, Sara Ali Khan, Vijay Varma and others have spoken out against the heinous crime at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. Now joining the chorus of outrage, actress Celina Jaitly has shared her own experience of harassment and victim shaming from her childhood. On X (formerly on Twitter), he talked about an incident that happened when he was in sixth grade. He wrote: “THE VICTIM IS ALWAYS THERE: In this picture I was only in sixth grade when boys from a nearby college started waiting outside my school. They followed the school rickshaw making cats all the way home.”
The actor continued, “I pretended not to notice them and a few days later they started throwing stones at me in the middle of the road to get my attention. Not a single bystander blinked. The teacher told me, “It was my fault because I was ‘too Western, I didn’t wear loose clothes and I didn’t tie my hair in two braids with oil!’
Recalling another incident where a man exposed himself to her, Celina Jaitly added, “It was at this age that a man first flashed me his private parts while waiting for the school rickshaw in the morning. For many years I blamed myself for this incident, which I kept to myself, repeating the teacher’s words over and over in my mind that it was MY MOUTH!”
Celina Jaitly also spoke of a disturbing experience where a teacher unfairly labeled her a “loose character”. She wrote, “I still remember in class 11 they cut the brake cable of my scooty because I didn’t acknowledge college boys who teased me and called me rude names and left rude notes on my scooty. My male classmates were scared for me and told our teachers. My class teacher called me and told me: “You’re going to be the FORWARD type of girl who rides a scooter and wears jeans for extra hours with short open hair, which makes the boys think you’re a slacker. It was always my fault. I still remember the day I jumped off my scooter to save myself because my brake cable.” was broken. I was hurt badly but still it was my fault. My Scooty was damaged both physically and mentally… And I was told it was MY FAULT!”
Celina Jait ended her note by revealing that her grandfather had to escort her to and from school for safety. “My retired colonel grandfather, who fought two wars for our country in his old age, had to escort me back to school… I still remember those Rude boys who chased me even damaging my scooter and also made derogatory remarks to my retired colonel. grandfather laughs at him. Nana stood and stared at them and then she turned away, shook her head and I could read her face as she walked away with me. His disgust for the people he put his life on the line. It’s time to stand up and ask for our right to be protected, WE ARE NOT FAULTS!” he wrote.
THE VICTIM IS ALWAYS THERE: In this picture, I was only in sixth grade when boys from a nearby university started waiting outside my school. They followed the school rickshaw every day till home. I pretended not to notice them and a few days later because… pic.twitter.com/cIrJmiDbQt
– Celina Jaitly (@CelinaJaitly) August 17, 2024
Celina Jaitly is known for working in films like Apna Sapna Money Money, No entry and Golmaal returns.
