Sonal vengurlekar
02:40
#MeToo: I was sexually harassed by photographer Raja Bajaj when I started out, says Sonal Vengurlekar
#MeToo: I was sexually harassed by photographer Raja Bajaj when I started out, says Sonal Vengurlekar
After TV personalities like writer-producer Vinta Nanda, Deepika Amin, Sameksha and Rahul Raj Singh have called out people for sexual harassment and misconduct, Sonal Vengurlekar has now come forward to share her ordeal. The actress, who has been a part of shows like 'Yeh Vaada Raha', 'Shastri Sisters', 'The Buddy Project' and 'Dil Dosti Dance', revealed to BT that she faced sexual advances by Raja Bajaj (Rajesh V Bajaj), a photographer . The incident happened in 2012 when she was trying to get a foothold in the television industry.
Talking exclusively to BT, Sonal says, “This was when I had started giving auditions and chanced upon an opportunity on a casting website. I called on the number mentioned on the site and was told by the person to come for an audition in Borivali. The man happened to be TV actress Sheena Bajaj’s father, Raja Bajaj.
He began the conversation by boasting about his daughter and how she gets paid Rs 55,000 per day. He promised to help me bag acting offers. I gave the audition, but couldn’t deliver the dialogues well since I was untrained. He told me that I have a good face, but needed to have a better understanding of the profession and suggested that I assist him on a shoot, which was slated to happen within a week. I agreed to that. A few days later, he called to say that we would be going to Lonavala for the shoot and I should inform my family that it would be a day-long assignment. He picked me up from Powai on March 5, 2012 and there was a model in his car. He introduced us and said that he would be doing a photo shoot with her at a resort in Khopoli. When we reached there, I saw another model with her mother at the resort. After some time, he told me to try out a couple of outfits, though I wondered why he asked me to try out those outfits when the shoot was with another model. I didn’t give it much thought and walked towards my room to do as I was told. However, I realised that he was following me. He had a bottle of cream in his hand and told me to apply it on my breasts before wearing those dresses, as that would help in giving them a proper shape. I told him that the dresses would fit me even without it. Much to my horror, he came forward and applied the cream on my breasts forcibly. I got scared and ran away. I told him that I wouldn’t try the dresses, and suggested that I would rather watch the shoot and learn on the job.”
Sonal, who was only 19 then, adds, “What made the situation even scarier was that no one from my family was with me. After the incident, I decided to step out of the room and act normal. Later in the evening, he told one of the models to leave for home and informed the other model, who was there with her mom, that her shoot would take place at night. I went back to my room, from where I could see Raja drinking and chatting with the resort manager. Sometime later, he came to my room and said, ‘Aapko main tantrik vidya sikhaunga, jisse aap raaton raat superstar bann jaogi. You have to remove your clothes and sit naked in front of me and repeat the mantra I chant.’ I snubbed him and said that I didn’t want to learn anything. He, then, stepped forward and tried to forcibly remove my clothes. I somehow managed to get out of the room and went straight to the model and her mother, who were in the adjoining room. I could see him peeping into the room fearing that I will expose him. Sometime later, the resort manager informed us that Raja had fled the scene without his belongings. He must have realised that he did something wrong for which he could get into trouble,” shares Sonal.
Sonal then stayed back at the resort along with the other model and her mother, as it wasn’t safe to travel at that hour. She further tells us, “The following day (March 6), when I returned to Mumbai, I was confused about sharing the incident with my mother. So, I spoke to a family friend and narrated the incident to him. He told me to call and confront Raja, but his wife answered the call on his behalf. I told her about what transpired during the shoot and she apologised. She also requested me to come over and discuss it. On March 7, I went with my friend and both of them (Raja and wife) fell at my feet and pleaded not to disclose it to anyone. They even said that they would help me bag a lead role. But by then, I was determined to file a police complaint and I did that at Kasturba Marg police station (Borivali), near his residence, the same day. The model and her mother, who were present at the resort, were called to record their statement as well. They said that they had no clue about what had happened inside my room, but testified that Raja had left without any information that night and they didn’t know why. I think he was locked up for a night before he was out on bail.” Recently, she was again contacted by the police to record a statement. She adds, “The friend who accompanied me while filing the FIR, called my mother around six months ago, to inform that the police was trying to reach out to me for my statement. I was shooting for almost 30 days and was quite busy with my work. At one point, I felt that I should withdraw the case, as besides the fact that my schedule might not allow me to be present for every hearing, I was also bogged down by the fact that a case filed years ago hasn’t yielded any result yet. I was scared for my parents, too. I didn’t want him or people known to him to harm me or my family, as I am the sole breadwinner. But my lawyer told me that if I wanted to close the case, I would have to retract my statement and say that there was a misunderstanding and it wasn’t this guy. I would have withdrawn the case had he apologised or if there was an alternative to do so without changing my statement. I also felt that withdrawing the case wasn’t a solution, as it was stemming from fear. He must have done the same with many other girls. There was no point in lying and I didn’t want him to get a clean chit. My family supported me on my decision.” Sonal recorded her statement around 15 days ago. She says, “His lawyer came up to me and told me that I am dragging a simple incident on for so long and that it will taint my image in the industry. She even tried to dissuade my mother from going ahead with the case and told her, ‘Naam kharaab ho jaayega beti ka.’ But I didn’t bother about it, as I hadn’t done anything wrong and told my mother not to pay heed to his lawyer at all. I told her that we have to give a final statement and then, the judiciary will decide the punishment. I am going to record my statement on December 1. The incident has made me careful and cautious. I am glad I reacted immediately and would urge every girl to do the same.” About her equation with Raja’s daughter Sheena, with whom she has worked on a show, Sonal says, “I think he was misusing his daughter’s name. Sheena worked with me in 'Kuch Toh Log Kahenge'. She would come to the set with her mother, who maintained her distance from me. I never interacted with Sheena as I didn’t want to get into that space.” Meanwhile, Raja Bajaj denies Sonal’s allegations of sexual harassment Responding to Sonal’s allegations, Raja Bajaj told BT, “My wife is into casting and I am a photographer. We would often upload casting requirements for my shoot on a particular website. Sonal called me after reading one such ad regarding a print shoot. She accompanied me as my assistant to the resort, which was more of a ruin. The model, who accompanied me to Khopoli, and was scheduled to shoot with us, was released immediately after we reached the location as she didn’t fit the bill. In fact, I asked Sonal, too, to leave with the model, but she insisted on staying back, saying that she wanted to assist me. There were hardly any rooms and, while I stayed in one room, Sonal and the others were put up in the other room. Also, why would I ask her to try outfits when she wasn’t the model? I did drink, but I didn’t go to her room, as none of the crew members were allotted separate rooms. So, the question of me going to her room in the night doesn’t arise. Also, I had a crew assisting me on the shoot. How come no one else saw what she is claiming to have happened? Everyone knew that I might leave for Mumbai the same night, as I had mentioned it at the dinner table.”
While denying Sonal’s allegations, Raja has also accused the resort manager of blackmailing him. He said, “The resort manager wanted me to shoot at the location the next day, too, but I returned to Mumbai as I was expecting another shoot to materialise. He called me the next day, which my wife answered. He told her that he wanted me to shoot the following day, but she said that it wasn’t possible, as I had work in Mumbai. However, we offered to find a similar location here and shoot for him. That’s when he started blackmailing and said that the girl, who accompanied me to the shoot, has accused me of touching her breasts. He added that he is trying to handle the situation, but won’t be able to do it for more than a couple of days.” He further added, “Sonal came to our house on March 7 and even demanded money. She asked for Rs. 3 lakh and came down to Rs. 1.5 lakh. When we refused, as we knew that we were not in the wrong, she mocked us by saying that we had made tall claims, but didn’t have the money to pay her. Her friend, who accompanied her to our house, was shouting at us and wanted us to take the blame on camera. We got so tired by their accusations that we decided to go to the cops. She left for the police station after we told her that we would be approaching the cops. While she was getting her FIR registered, we, too, were getting a counter FIR registered. However, the cops did not take our version. Since we don’t understand Marathi, we didn’t realize that she had mentioned the wrong date (of the shoot) in the FIR copy.”
