New Delhi: Almost a year after the MeToo movement started with Harvey Weinstein and then expanded to Hollywood at large, India is finally experiencing its own MeToo movement. Prompted by former actor Tanushree Dutta’s revelations, the baton has been picked up, but not by Bollywood – which has largely remained silent – but the world of Indian journalism and comedy.

In the past 24 hours, women have come forward to accuse at least three newspaper editors of what would amount to sexual harassment at the workplace – since the victim worked under the accused in the organisation’s hierarchy.

In addition, accounts are surfacing of harassment and predatory behaviour by journalists at work, and of journalists being targeted by prominent persons they had gone to meet or interview. As the personal stories of not just journalists but advertising executives and other professionals across India pile up on social media, the women speaking out say they are determined to put an end to the culture of silence which has allowed scores of men to get away with harassment, stalking and even assault – while on dates, in the course of work or other situations.

Who’s getting named and shamed

The outpouring started on Thursday, October 4, when a woman publicly accused comedian and YouTuber Utsav Chakraborty of sexually harassing her on social media by sending her “unsolicited dick pics” and asking for her nude pictures.

Multiple other women, including a minor, came out with stories of their own soon after, precipitating not only an industry-wide storm in the comedy world but also sparking off a separate thread on sexual harassment in Indian journalism.

Journalist Sandhya Menon started by sharing an account of being harassed by K.R. Sreenivas, currently resident editor of the Times of India in Hyderabad, in 2008 when they both worked at the Bangalore Mirror. The Mirror is published by the same company that runs the TOI.

Also read: Why I Believe Tanushree Dutta and Dr Christine Blasey Ford While dropping her home at night, Menon said Sreenivas put his hand on her thigh and said that he and his wife had grown apart. Menon asked him to remove his hand and left. The next day she complained to the HR department but they promptly informed Sreenivas of the complaint. Others dismissed her complaints, telling her the man was harmless.

Since I’m calling them out. Let me tell you about @KRSreenivas who is currently resident editor @toi Hyderabad (I think) who offered to drop me back after a day’s work.

We were about to launch Bangalore mirror back in 2008 and I had just moved to this city. — Sandhya Menon (@TheRestlessQuil) October 5, 2018

Menon followed that account with another one about Gautam Adhikari, former editor in chief of DNA in Mumbai. Following a night out with Menon and a friend, Menon said Adhikari kissed her without consent and then later asked her not to tell anyone.

And finally, one more calling out and I’m done. Gautam Adhikari who was the editor in chief of DNA Bombay. His exec assistant and I were think friends and we’d go out a lot. Once he told her you girls are always going out, I’m new to the city show me some sights — Sandhya Menon (@TheRestlessQuil) October 5, 2018

So I gave him a hug to say goodnight. He took my face in that moment, held right and kissed my mouth; tongue and all. It was all I could do to not jump out of the window and fly home. I scrambled for the door, muttered a goodnight and ran. — Sandhya Menon (@TheRestlessQuil) October 5, 2018

She also had to refuse subsequent offers to see him and spend the weekend away with him. Menon’s account on Twitter packed added punch because she also pointed readers to two blog posts she had written at the time of these incidents, where she had described what had happened but not named the editors involved.

On Saturday, a former Times of India journalist, Sonora Jha, who worked out of the newspaper’s Bangalore bureau, recounted an incident from 1995 involving Adhikari when he was TOI’s executive editor. Sonora wrote on Menon’s Twitter timeline that he “called me to his hotel room to discuss flexible hours and then the same assault you described”:

Sandhya – Thank you for exposing Gautam Adhikari. He sexually harassed me when I was Chief Of Metro Bureau at Times Of India Bangalore. He was Executive Editor. Called me to his hotel room to discuss flexible hours and then the same assault you described – sick kiss from a toad. — Sonora Jha (@ProfSonoraJha) October 6, 2018

Sonora, who is now a professor of journalism at Seattle in the United States added that when she complained to her immediate supervisor, he told her that Adhikari had asked that she be “sidelined”:

He tried to push me into his hotel bed but I pushed him away and managed to run out the door. Later, when I told my resident editor, I was told that Adhikari had asked him to “sideline” me on the job. The Times Of India asked him to leave but I believe they brought him back. — Sonora Jha (@ProfSonoraJha) October 6, 2018

The third editor Menon tweeted about was Manoj Ramachandran, an associate editor with the Hindustan Times in New Delhi, a newspaper she was working with at the time.

Back in 2005, I was 25, and taking shelter from the flood in Bombay at a colleague’s house, @manojanthikad sent me a text, “I want to fuck you.” He took my number from a mutual friend and decided to charm me when Bombay was drowning with that approach. https://t.co/andMvyuV5X — Sandhya Menon (@TheRestlessQuil) October 5, 2018

What started off as a thread about her own experiences soon transformed into a sort of list of perpetrators as other women started messaging Menon stories of being harassed by the same men, and then other accounts of different men were also added to the Twitter threads.

Menon then updated the list with screenshots of these conversations, some anonymous and some not.

Initially, a woman who wished to stay anonymous, described a distressing interaction she had as a reporter with author Kiran Nagarkar; however, a few hours later, she decided to put her name on the allegations, tweeting:

I am sorry I wanted my name blanked out, @TheRestlessQuil. I don’t anymore. I don’t want to hide. Thanks for the courage. https://t.co/cgAxlwu70d — Poorva Joshi (@poorvajoshi93) October 5, 2018

Joshi described the environment when she was interviewing Nagarkar as “one of the most uncomfortable” she has ever been in. She added that he’d sat too close to her, insisted on hugging her goodbye and that his hands had lingered for too long, leaving her feeling uncomfortable.

A former Hindustan Times correspondent, Avantika Mehta, first shared her story anonymously in a piece for FirstPost, but decided to identify herself on Twitter a day later.

I’m the ex-lawyer HT correspondent mentioned in @MasalaBai’s story. This thread includes photos of my conversation with prashant jha. you will notice I do everything and beyond to not piss him off while he says he wants to hit on me — Avantika Mehta (@bitingfriends) October 6, 2018

Mehta, who has accused Hindustan Times editor Prashant Jha of harassment, said they’d met in 2014 when she joined HT and that she’d tried very hard to “not piss him off” despite multiple messages from him where he propositioned her.

She also posted screenshots of Whatsapp conversations between her and Jha. Though the date of the exchange is not known, or the precise work relationship between the two, Mehta called Jha’s messages an act of “harassment”. “I was as nice as I could be because my little experience in Delhi has taught me pissing off a man who’s considered a darling journalist will have shit repercussions for my career and/or I’ll be at the receiving end of his friend’s wrath or laughter,” she tweeted.

Update: On Sunday, Mehta clarified that the conversations were from 2017, when she was no longer an employee of the Hindustan Times.

thought it was something that he could do. that I’d just quit my perfectly safe job and was trying the freelance waters made me an easy target to try, I’ve assumed over time while processing this exchange. — Avantika Mehta (@bitingfriends) October 7, 2018

In another thread, Anoo Bhuyan, health reporter at The Wire, identified Mayank Jain, a reporter from Business Standard as a “sexual predator” and then described being at the receiving end of his “unwelcome sexual predations”.

3. #MeToo because I spent days asking, “What kind of woman am I, that this man could approach me just like that… and tell me to #FuckHim?” “And then say that he thought, I’m a woman like that…”https://t.co/mFjU0yZf4Y — Anoo Bhuyan (@AnooBhu) October 4, 2018

Soon after, a freelance journalist replied to the same thread, adding screenshots of her conversations with Jain in which he assumes that shel would like to “take a place” with him, implying he assumed she would want to have sex with him.

Along with Jain, Anurag Verma, a former trends editor with Huffpost India was also accused of harassing women with inappropriate snapchats and requests to “send nudes.”

#MeToo hits #journalism. Series of allegation of #sexual predation pour in against 2 journalists.

1. Mayank Jain, a current employee of @bsindia (Business Standard)and a former employee of Scroll.

2. Anurag Verma, a former Editor, Trends of @HuffPostIndia (Huff Post) — Anindya (@AninBanerjee) October 5, 2018

While most of these interactions describe straight, older men imposing themselves on younger, female colleagues, just a few days ago, this spate of allegations was preceded by a quieter thread on Twitter which said that Hindustan Times journalist Dhrubo Jyoti had been accused of making multiple men uncomfortable with his behaviour.

There are multiple victims.

None I have interacted with want to lodge cases.

It’s pretty clear that even if anyone wanted to make formal complaints of any kind there is no structure that would permit them to do so.

Community response is the only path to justice — Amba Azaad (@AmbaAzaad) September 26, 2018

While Jyoti did not address the concerns on the same thread, he responded to someone else, acknowledging his behaviour and said that he was working to make amends to all the individuals he might have hurt.

am not waiting for things to die down. Since yesterday, I had several conversations and suggestions with friends, former friends and people I was intimate with to rectify conduct. Have also spoken to people I dated. Cannot apologise before that work — Dhrubo Jyoti (@dhrubo127) September 27, 2018

How the accused have reacted

While, Prashant Jha did not answer a call and text asking him for a response to these allegations, Chakraborty has vehemently denied sending unsolicited pictures of his genitalia to any women and has specifically denied asking for nude pictures from a minor.

In a long thread, he explained his actions, saying pain medications for his chronic disease had often left him in a haze, where he was unsure of who he was even talking to on Snapchat or any other social medium, adding that he had mistaken some of these interactions to be consensual expressions of sexual interest.

After getting flak for his apology, he posted this.

It’s a little too late now but I am sorry. I really am. The past 24 hours were a crucible. I faced a very scary personal truth. I can’t think of myself as a victim anymore. Please tell me what to do now. How to make things right? I don’t want anyone to be hurt anymore. — Utsav (@Wootsaw) October 5, 2018

Anurag Verma tweeted an apology and also explained his actions, saying he’d thought of the term “send nudes” really loosely, thinking it was a “meme” more than an actual request for naked pictures.

I had posted a video where I pulled a packet of biscuits from my shorts and sent it to a ton of people on my snapchat. Which I now realise is not funny and very much crass. I didn’t send any unsolicited picture of genitals. I want to apologise for making people uncomfortable. — Anurag Verma (@kitAnurag) October 4, 2018

While Manoj and Nagarkar did not respond to The Wire’s requests for a response, Gautam Adhikari, in an email said:

“I do not recall any of this. I retired from the media industry many years ago and have no recollection of this incident. I always treated my former colleagues fairly and politely and this person was no exception I would think. I’m sorry if I have ever been unintentionally impolite to anyone but I do not recall such lapses from respectful behavior towards all.”

In an emailed response, Srinivas told The Wire, “TOI has said the charge would be investigated by it’s committee against sexual harassment. A highly empowered and accessible committee under this policy and under the law is in place to investigate and address all allegations of sexual harassment. The group is headed by a senior woman executive. I will submit myself to the investigation.”

Mayank Jain did not respond to an email asking for a comment either. However, he has since left media-related WhatsApp and Twitter groups without offering any explanation.

How employers have reacted

Responding to The Wire‘s query about allegations against Jha, general counsel and company secretary for HT Media, Dinesh Mittal said that they will be releasing an official statement on Monday, adding, “We will start an investigation immediately and follow our policies to the core.” He also said that had Avantika Mehta flagged these interactions during her time at HT “action would have been taken.”

All India Bakchod, the comedy group that employed Chakraborty full-time and then as a freelancer during the time most of this harassment is said to have occurred, has removed all videos featuring Chakraborty from their YouTube channel.

After being called out for knowing about these allegations and not acting until it became public knowledge, AIB posted a second apology for implicitly supporting Chakraborty’s behaviour.

Vice India, which recently launched a talk show with Chakraborty, has also removed all links from its website and Facebook page but has not made a statement.

Also watch: Vinod Dua discusses India’s #MeToo movement

HuffPost India, where both Chakraborty and Verma were employees – but not at the time these events occurred – posted a note from its editor-in-chief, Aman Sethi, which said:

“HuffPost India is unaware of any allegations levelled against Verma and Chakraborty while they worked here. We are checking if there were any similar allegations while they were here. HuffPost India has a zero tolerance approach to any form of workplace harassment.

HuffPost India stands with survivors and treats complaints regarding potential misconduct by its employees with utmost seriousness.”

Shyamlal Majumdar, Business Standard editor responded: “On Mayank Jain, a due process is on and we can share with you the details as and when we will have anything to say”.

TOI employees have asked their superiors to respond.

Internal petition to the Editors by employees at Times of India: “As a newspaper that has proactively covered the #MeToo movement and written edits thundering against sexual harassment at workplace, the least we can do is practice what we preach.” pic.twitter.com/dystG6YVE1 — Somesh Jha (@someshjha7) October 6, 2018

Now open, the floodgates are showing no sign of closing as women on Twitter continue to name and shame men including poets, authors and advertising executives. Others are sharing stories of being harassed without naming the perpetrators, yet more are anonymously naming perpetrators.

In the US, the initial flood of accusations was followed by a few court cases, entertainers being removed from shows and yet more taking self-imposed sabbaticals.

It is still unclear how many of these cases will be pursued legally or investigated by these men’s employers.

So far, this is what Menon has articulated on Twitter.

Walk the talk when they say they have a “zero” tolerance policy.

3. For men to know what’s acceptable and what’s not and treat women, especially younger women, with respect.

4. To effect a general shift in the attitude of make journalists. — Sandhya Menon (@TheRestlessQuil) October 5, 2018

Indian media houses will now have to react to these accusations and navigate how they handle anonymous complaints, public ones and ones that took place so long ago that there are no corroborating screenshots of problematic interactions to serve as proof.

Though unconnected to the current campaign, one former editor, Tarun Tejpal of Tehelka, is already facing serious criminal charges – of rape – following a complaint by a journalist who worked with his magazine at the time. Five years later, the trial – which was meant to be fast-tracked to give speedy justice to the survivor – has yet to conclude in the face of repeated delays.

Note: The story has been updated to add Professor Sonora Jha’s account of a 1995 incident at the Times of India involving Gautam Adhikari, who was the newspaper’s executive editor at the time, the lawyer Avantika Mehta’s charge of harassment against HT bureau chief Prashant Jha, HT’s response, Srinivas’s and Business Standard‘s response.

Note: On Sunday, October 7, 2018, the story was updated to include Avantika Mehta’s tweets clarifying that her conversations with Prashant Jha were from 2017, after she had left the Hindustan Times.

Note: In an earlier version of this story, the account of an anonymous complainant against Kiran Nagarkar was inadvertently attributed to Poorva Joshi.

(The Internal Complaints Committee at The Wire is headed by our managing editor, Monobina Gupta. Anyone who wishes to make a specific complaint against The Wire’s employees, including its founding editors, may email mg@thewire.in)