#MeToo: 'Women, Especially In This Condition, Are Vulnerable,' Says Fardeen Khan

As the 'Me Too' movement gains momentum in India, several women have mustered the courage to come out and point out the sexual predators. Several eminent personalities from the Indian film industry have been named including Nana Patekar, Alok Nath, Rajat Kapoor, Varun Grover, Karim Morani, Sajid Khan and Vikas Bahl to name a few.

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While several Bollywood celebrities have come out in support of the movement, there are several other Bollywood celebrities who chose to not comment on the issue. Bollywood actor Fardeen Khan also voiced his opinion on the ongoing 'Me Too' movement and said that the allegations need to be taken very seriously.

Fardeen Khan in a conversation with ANI, Fardeen Khan said, "This is a worldwide phenomenon that is being going on. Women, especially in this condition, are vulnerable. I do believe they deserve the benefit of the doubt but at the same time I do not believe that making an allegation against someone automatically assumes guilt." 

The 'Me Too' movement that originated in the west around a year ago has taken the Indian film industry by a storm. The movement gained momentum after Bollywood actress Tanushree Dutta accused veteran actor Nana Patekar of sexual harassment while the duo was filming a song for the film 'Horn Ok Pleassss' in 2008. The actress also lashed out at choreographer Ganesh Acharya fr pressurising her into doing an intimate sequence with Patekar for the song. Dutta also accused the producer of the film, Sami Siddiqui and director Rakesh Sarang of harassing her on the sets of the film. On Wednesday, October 10, Dutta filed a complaint with the police at the Oshiwara police station against the four. 

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Patekar also opted out of 'Housefull 4' following Akshay Kumar's stand on the movement with allegations of sexual harassment on director Sajid Khan and Nana Patekar. In a statement that Akshay Kumar put up on his official Twitter handle on Friday, October 12, the actor who is gearing up for his upcoming film '2.0' said, "I've just landed back in the country last night and reading all the news has been very disturbing. I've requested the producers of Housefull 4 to cancel the shoot until further investigation. This is something that requires stringent action. I will not work with any proven offenders and all those who have been subjugated to harassment should be heard and given the justice they deserve." 

Here's his tweet: