My only fault is I'm a woman: Preity Zinta

Mumbai, Jul 3: Bollywood actress Preity Zinta Wednesday said that her police complaint against Ness Wadia is not "frivolous or immature" and that "my only fault is that I am a woman who reached a breaking point after constantly being abused, threatened and humiliated".

Preity recently filed an FIR against her former beau Ness, alleging that he molested her. She wants the people to "have a little patience and wait for all the facts to come out".

"This is not a frivolous or immature complaint to the police. I have never lied in the past and do not lie when it suits me or is convenient. I am a responsible citizen of this country and my only fault is that I am a woman, who reached a breaking point after constantly being abused, threatened and humiliated at work by someone who once was very dear to me," the actress said in a post on her official Facebook post.

Raising her voice for women power, she said: "Violence and aggression against women is wrong, yet people try to point fingers at the woman who comes out with it trying to make her sound frivolous and with ulterior motive.

"My only motive is to fight for my self and this fight is not against any family but an individual. If the media found out about my complaint, and it became a big deal what can I do about it? Did I call for a press conference? NO I did not. I actually asked people and the media to respect my privacy."

She reiterated that "my motive is not to harm anyone but only to protect myself".

Also read:

Not for money or publicity: Preity Zinta explains on FB why she sued Ness

Mumbai, Jul 2: Preity Zinta, in a new post on her Facebook page, seeks to bust some popular myths that her case against former partner Ness Wadia has thrown up. From countering suggestions that she latched on to the Wadias for money to clearing the air around her relationship with Ness, she has tried to silence her critics, claiming that she actually contributed financially to some of Wadia's ventures.

"IPL was my project from the start and for the record not only did I pay for myself (5 crores) when I got into the IPL (bid) I paid for Ness too ! 5 crores ! (Proof of my financial commitment in the IPL is with the Bcci.) To be fair to him he did pay me back a couple of months later (without any premium) so Hope the money theory is put to end once and for all. I have never taken ANYTHING from anyone now or ever in the past as I have a lot of self respect and pride myself for being self made and not motivated by other people’s money. Instead, whenever I could help him in my capacity I did. The Go Air commercial was done completely free of cost by me and the money that I earned on the TV show Kaun Banega Crorepati was also donated by me for the Wadia Children hospital," she says in her Facebook post.

She then goes on to clarify why it was necessary to lodge an official complaint against Ness Wadia, despite her having been in a relationship with him the past. "I have never lied in the past and do not lie when it suits me or is convenient. I am a responsible citizen of this country and my only fault is that I am a woman, who reached a breaking point after constantly being abused, threatened & humiliated at work by someone who once was very dear to me," she writes.

Roughly a couple of weeks back, Preity Zinta made her way back to news headlines when she lodged a complaint against Ness Wadia of harassment and abuse at an IPL match in Mumbai. She however earned more flak than sympathy with people calling her an actor past her prime trying to claw her way back into limelight, a vengeful ex-girlfriend, a poor little rich girl undeserving of sympathy and a drama queen.

Renowned columnist Tavleen Singh actually dismissed her allegations of harassment against her ex-beau as a personal vendetta being played out in public, in the process jeopardising justice for women in 'real' stories.

On Twitter and Facebook, it appeared as if people had taken it upon themselves to emphatically suggest that Preity was too privileged to be molested or harassed, unwittingly revealing the biggest hurdle facing women seeking justice in cases of sexual harassment in India. Even mainsteam media, which usually reports cases of sexual harassment with outrage, chose to make light of it. In fact, one news channel started a hashtag called #PreityNessMess, using the trivialising word 'mess'.

Zinta, however, held her ground saying that the incident in Wankhede Stadium was the last straw in a history of abusive behaviour that she has faced from Ness in the recent times.

In India, the burden of proving the authenticity of her complaint always lies with the woman. Also, the fact that Zinta's class, professional and personal history were repeatedly brought up while questioning the veracity of her allegations reveals how even educated middle class India finds it necessary to first determine, by some obviously arbitrary reasoning, whether a victim is vulnerable enough to have been abused.

"A famous actress charging the great grandson of Mohammad Ali Jinnah with ‘molestation’ is a sensational story, while brutality against rural women is routine in India that is Bharat," Tavleen Singh wrote in her column on the Zinta.

Since when did 'molestation' become merely sensational and not criminal? Obviously, Bharat seems to have forgotten.

Preity is right when she says she was shocked by some of these reactions. As she writes, it's unfortunate that in India the fairer sex sadly has to have more tolerance and "worry about what people will say irrespective of the facts and the truth".