The incident happened while the actress was on her way to Kochi for work. A car hit her vehicle from behind while she was driving, resulting in an argument. The passengers in the other car forced their way into her car and drove away with the actress. According to reports, Bhavana was held hostage for two hours while the gang took pictures of her in order to blackmail her for money. The FIR was filed with allegations of rape, criminal intimidation, criminal conspiracy, and violations of relevant sections of the Indian Information Technology Act.
After 5 years, Bhavana decided to speak about the trauma she went through for years. In her post she said “This has not been an easy journey. The journey from being a victim to becoming a survivor. For 5 years now, my name and my identity have been suppressed under the weight of the assault inflicted on me.
Though I am not the one who has committed the crime, there have been many attempts to humiliate, silence and isolate me. But at such times I have had some who stepped forward to keep my voice alive. Now when I hear so many voices speak up for me I know that I am not alone in this fight for justice.
To see justice prevail, to get wrongdoers punished and to ensure no one else goes through such an ordeal again, I shall continue this journey. For all those who are standing with me – a heartfelt thank you for your love.”
Bhavana is the first actress in the South Indian film industry to speak out bravely about her assault on 2017. Later, in 2018, Chinmayi used the #metoo hashtag on Twitter to speak out about sexual harassment. Several women in the south have spoken out about the harassment they have suffered over the years. While some of these allegations were made anonymously via Twitter accounts supporting the movement, others used their real names.
