Churni Ganguly opens up on #MeToo: I’m still waiting for an apology

Churni Ganguly extended her support to Daminee Benny Basu, who has been spearheading a body to combat sexual harassment in theatre and other creative spaces in Kolkata

Churni Ganguly

Churni Ganguly posted an explosive status on social media that incited the #MeToo controversy. Recently there has been a buzz about sexual misconduct in Bengali theatre. Sudipto Chatterjee, who was alleged of rape and molestation in 2019, performed in the premiere show of Suman Mukhopadhyay’s Tiner Talwar in March. The director’s decision to cast Sudipto was slammed by the victims, their friends, theatre workers, and people from different quarters. Later, actress Daminee Basu also criticised Suman Mukhopadhyay for casting him and that initiated another social media war. Now, Churni said that she was molested in her childhood. She revealed the incident that happened to her.

Churni wrote on her Facebook post, “Today I recall a very personal Instagram post from about six years ago. It read, “I may have been young, but I have not forgotten. #MeToo” - A long-awaited cry from me, a silent victim of child molestation. From one who kept quiet through the rest of her growing years, simply because she could not tell.”

Churni further added, “The perpetrator has thus gone unpunished. I’d like to believe today that Karma will take care of that. But I’m still waiting for an apology. That’s the least he can do: apologise for the trauma, the lifelong scar that I had to bear. He’s probably relaxed at the thought that I cannot take his name. And that is precisely what made him take advantage of a mere 12-year-old, still very lost, and yet to know the world.”

The RRKPK actress reminisced about pain and wrote, “I remember I was confused, and in utter disbelief. I remember rushing out of the room, when I could, with a throat dry, and a heavily pounding heart, with no one to turn to. I was shattered and shaken because I trusted him with my little soul.” While signing Benny Basu's petition about a safe space in the theatre, Churni found that she was late. Then she decided to reveal the incident. She wrote, “So let this post today be my signature. Not just for a safe space in the theatre, but for a safe space in society at large, in every home, in every room. Share your story if you can, when you can. Only that can such gross misconduct be prevented. It’s also the first step towards healing. Today, I heal as I share. Thank you for hearing me out.”

But Churni is still waiting for the perpetrator's apology who still roams around in the society. She wrote, “I doubt his sexually perverse nature has changed. His gestures and holier-than-thou attitude still make me cringe.” Churni believes that the perpetrator will see this post and understand that she might have been young at that time but did not forget anything. Kaushik Ganguly commended his wife for revealing the truth in front of the society. He wrote, “Our family's endless love, adoration, and respect are there for you forever. Let the burden of your painful memory be lifted with our embrace. The harm this untold angst has done to your mind over these years will be judged in a different form. I am seeing the perpetrator's slow demise. The hand will be burnt to ashes one day. Till that day, I handle my hatred under the cover of responsibility and civilization.”

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