Actress Bhavana Menon, who was sexually assaulted five years ago, has broken her silence about the devastating incident and the turmoil she faced while seeking justice.
In an interview with 'The Mojo Story', a YouTube channel, she recalled her courtroom battle, which happened in 2020.
Bhavana said that she spent 15 days, from morning until evening, in court.
"My dignity has been shredded to a million pieces...And I wanted my dignity back," Bhavana said.
Each time a lawyer cross-examined her -- and she was quizzed by a team of seven lawyers -- she had to prove that she was innocent, she said.
''When I came out of the court on the last day, after 15 hearings, I was feeling like a survivor and realised that I am a survivor not a victim anymore," Bhavana said.
Early this year, Bhavana took to Instagram and shared her court ordeal and expressed gratitude to her family, close relatives, friends, and the public for extending support.
With her sheer willpower, the actress fought the legal battle without thinking about the outcome.
Screenshot of the Instagram post of Bhavana Menon
© Photo : Instagram/bhavzmenon/
From facing threats and harassment on social media from the perpetrators to being denied acting jobs in the Malayalam film industry, Bhavana went through a lot of hardship after the traumatic incident.
However, a few filmmakers including Ashik Abu and Shaji Kailas, actor-turned-director Prithviraj, and actor Jayasurya, came forward to support her and worked with her.
The Indian film industry was rocked by the shocking incident of abduction of actress Bhavana Menon in 2017, who was sexually assaulted by a group of men in a moving car while returning home from a shooting set in Kerala state's Kochi city.
The main accused, Pulsar Sunil, revealed that popular Malayalam language actor Dileep was behind the assault.
In July 2017, the investigation team arrested Dileep on the basis of the circumstantial evidence against him allegedly conspiring the abduction and sexual assault with other accused men. However, in October 2017, he was granted bail by the court.
Dileep again made headlines in 2022 for allegedly intimidating an investigating officer because of which new charges were filed against him and five others.