Sona Mohapatra calls to end victim blaming, recalls advice to wear dupatta ‘properly’ after being sexually harassed in college

Singer Sona Mohapatra is a huge supporter of the #MeToo movement and has been using her social media presence to amplify previously unheard voices of survivors of sexual assault and harassment. Now, she is lending her support to another movement that calls out the practice of victim blaming.

Using the hashtag #INeverAskForIt, Sona urged everyone to tweet what they wore when they experienced sexual misconduct. She also narrated an incident of ‘eve-teasing’ from her college days.

“During my BTech Engg, walking to the microprocessor lab in a loose khadi green kurta with a salwar.Seniors whistling, speculating loudly about my bra size. One ‘well wisher’ walked up & asked why I wasn’t wearing my dupatta ‘properly’, fully covering my ‘boobs’. #INeverAskForIt,” she wrote on Twitter.

 

During my BTech Engg, walking to the microprocessor lab in a loose khadi green kurta with a salwar.Seniors whistling, speculating loudly about my bra size. One ‘well wisher’ walked up & asked why I wasn’t wearing my dupatta ‘properly’, fully covering my ‘boobs’. #INeverAskForIt

— Sona Mohapatra (@sonamohapatra) November 23, 2020

“Tweet what you remember wearing when you experienced sexual violence, threat or intimidation. Draw attention to victim blame. I’m tagging @lydiabuthello @sonamakapoor @MadhumitaM1 @Chinmayi @MasalaBai @TheRestlessQuil #INeverAskForIt,” she added in another tweet.

 

Tweet what you remember wearing when you experienced sexual violence, threat or intimidation.
Draw attention to victim blame.
I’m tagging @lydiabuthello @sonamakapoor @MadhumitaM1 @Chinmayi @MasalaBai @TheRestlessQuil #INeverAskForIt https://t.co/dJsmgdFjgV

— Sona Mohapatra (@sonamohapatra) November 23, 2020

Earlier this year, in an interview with Hindustan Times, Sona talked about the price she had to pay for taking a stand and supporting the #MeToo movement. She said that when she accused singers Anu Malik and Kailash Kher for sexual misconduct, she was the ‘first one to be punished’ and asked to leave Sa Re Ga Ma Pa, which she was a judge on.

 

“I feel that when you end up losing some work because of what you stand for and what you believe in, it is the kind of work you are anyway never meant to do. The kind of work that comes your way, the allies and friends that come your way are the ones that take you much further, and you end up doing the kind of work that makes you really proud. So, in the long run, I have never really seen any huge downside of being myself. I have only grown from strength to strength as an artist, I play to bigger and bigger crowds, and I have found my allies. They might be few but they are the ones worth working with,” she had said.

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