We came across this statement on Deepti Naval’s Facebook page. You will not find celeb stories too often on Hillele.org. However, we were so appaled by the way a certain media house and subsequently other newspapers have handled her story that we have decided to share Deepti Naval’s version here. A society that can’t respect its artistes,children and women needs to think about how civilized they really are. Creating SEX ALARMS is something media does for eye balls much too often. We will never forget how a teacher Uma Khurana was harassed by a channel few years back. A Channel had pushed its way into Uma’s house and announced to the world that she was running a ‘sex racket’. Uma fought her case bravely in the courts and for the first time in the History Of Indian Media a News Channel was shut down for a month as a punishment.

Media’s distortions are shameful. Not everyone is as brave or priviledged as Uma Khuarana or Deepti Naval. Not everyone resides in cities. When we see random reports in News about some woman running a racket or having been killed (KHAIRLANJI) because the villagers were upset with her character please remember these stories more often than not are planted for eyeballs. Sometimes there could be political rivalry as well.

The reason why we are sharing Deepti Naval’s status here is largely because we are alarmed and concerned how women are constantly used for eyeballs. This is violence of the highest order. Subtle, Nuanced,strategic and yet appears to many as not part of any scheme. But we contest! There is a scheme and it is to use a person’s name for one’s benifit. There is a scheme to overlook things for one’s gain. Lastly there is a scheme ofcourse to create stories for one’s bread and butter and sometimes one’s repressed self. Earn your bread in a better way!! Get a Life lazy reporters!!! Shame!

This is Deepti Naval’s FB status-

I’ve been pretty upset the last few days over something that the print media has been distorting hugely . . . each one of you on Facebook has been totally silent about it – no comment whatsoever – and I appreciate that – and since I know you people care, I’d like to, to explain what has really happened –

Just before the release of ‘Listen Amaya’ me and Farooque Shaikh were doing an interview for Rajiv Masand in my Versova terrace flat. I had been keeping unwell those days and had requested Rajiv’s camera team to cover over to my house instead of me having to go to his studio. Rajiv came over with his three camera setup and we were in the middle of this interview when three members from the Society barged into the flat and demanded that we stop this activity – they thought we were making a movie – I explained to them that they can sit here and watch – we are not making a movie, we are doing an interview – but they threatened to call the police on me. Rajiv, Farooque and my director Avinash Singh and his wife Geeta were all very embarrassed hearing this sort of conversation. We tried to wind up fast. Then one neighbor Mr Rajan Khurana was sent up to convey to me that the Society has threatened to call the police if we don’t stop ‘this activity’ right away. I explained again but to no avail. After that I got a call from the Secy of the building who was very irked and repeated that ‘We’ll have to call the police on you’. We cancelled all other interviews after that.
I was hugely embarrassed; I apologized to my colleagues and they quietly left.

I felt so humiliated and felt my rights as a resident were violated. I decided to pack my stuff from the Oceanic residence and come and stay at my Madh Island house.

I am an artist and have always given interviews in my own home – all artists do that all the time – there is nothing illegal about it – it is their right.

Never mine, now this is what follows the incident.

A week / eight days ago a journalist friend asked me what I was doing sitting in Madh – and I gave vent to my frustration. I told him over the phone that –

‘The Society treated me so badly and kept threatening me with “WE’LL CALL THE POLICE, WE’LL CALL THE POLICE”, as if I’m running a racket here!’

Next day it was out in print – in Mumbai Mirror – the sensational headline –
‘I’M NOT RUNNING A PROSTITUTION RACKET” – and the story about the society fiasco, stating how badly insulted I was by the members of my building. Nothing wrong with the contents of the article. But this is what follows . . .

Other papers have picked up the SENSATIONAL HEADLINE and implied as if the Society has ACCUSED me of running a prostitution racket. I’ve neen appalled! I will post those articles so you all can see how the press distorts everything to make eye-catching news! One of the tabloids has said –

DEEPTI NAVAL OUSTED OUT OF HER ‘PROSTITUTION DEN’

A dear friend, she called me – appalled at reading the contents in a Calcutta tabloid – ‘What is all this? Who has been accusing of running a racket?’
I explained to her that no one is ACCUSING me of running anything like that – it is the PRESS that is IMPLYING . . .

Of course I’ve been back at Oceanic in the last days and have conducted my meeting there as well – I’m a little confused – should I take action against the print media or should I let it go. If I let this go, then there are people who’ve said –
‘KUCH TO HOGA NA . . . AISE HIS TO NAHIN SOCIETY ITNA OBJECT KAR RAHI’ – Imagine?
Friends from the industry feel ‘let dogs bark . . . you carry on’

I was sitting there at my terrace flat – after Farooque and I had spent a whole day going to various radio stations giving fresh round of interviews before the re-release of the old Chashmebaddoore on April 5th – and I was looking around at my beautiful spacious home where I sit and dream, do all my writing work, invite friends, spend quality time with myself – and I was in tears . . . this sanctuary of mine to be called a ‘PROSTITUTIO DEN’ – in my heart, I apologized to my father who is no more in this world, and quietly prayed, –
‘I’m sorry, Piti, see what all this has catapulted into? Please help me learn to ignore it and move on – but I will not disappoint you – I will fight for my right!’

Thank you for bearing with me – I can’t go around explaining to the whole world but I can . . . to a few of you who I know, care . . .

Deepti