Obituary: When Poonam Pandey addressed accusations of “provoking” sex crimes in society

Although Poonam Pandey did things that made me uncomfortable, I liked her. Aware of my seniority, she nevertheless chose to address me as ‘Subhash’, and I liked it. It didn’t come from a place of disrespect.

What really bothered her was the belief that she provoked sex crimes with her provocative conduct. “Apparently my pictures are responsible for crime against women. Ha ha, really? The same reasoning was used against me during the Nirbhaya case in Delhi. I want to ask all those people who find me provocative enough to induce crime, was there no crime against women before I arrived on the scene?”

Poonam felt people needed a scapegoat for their own failings. “Why blame me for social evils? I am just a girl trying to find my place in the world. I am used to being targeted by the moral police and the morcha wallis. When law and order fails, the blame has to pinned to some convenient target. But why blame me? What have I done? Main toh sirf baat karti hoon. Maine kuch kiya nahin. There are renowned respected actresses who heave and thrust in item songs. They are watched by a lot more men than I am,” she said.

Poonam had a point. She firmly believed rape has no connection with the pin-up provocateurs. “I don’t think men go out and commit crime against women because of what they see in films and in pictures. On the contrary, I feel there would be far less crime against women if there would be more sexual gratification at home for men belonging to a certain class who don’t have direct and easy access to female company.”

This is where Poonam felt the revival of the beer-bar culture did its bit to decrease the damage. “I think re-opening the beer bars would reduce crime against women on the streets. Men would be able to have at least some access to erotic gratification,” she said.

Poonam objected strongly to the view that women invite unwanted attention by the way they dress. “Oh please! Five-year old girls get raped (actually, a lot younger too, dear Poonam). Do they wear short skirts that provoke such crimes? It is ridiculous to suggest that rape can be prevented if women remain fully clothed,” she reasoned.

In any case, Poonam felt mainstream Hindi cinema has a lot to be answerable for. “I’ve seen them indulge in shameless sex talk where heroes are making pointed references to women’s body parts. What kind of example are these iconic stars setting? I’ve never posed nude. Even that picture that was posted of me nude after the IPL victory was morphed. I even admitted that later at the risk of disappointing my fans. I’ve threatened to go nude. But have I really done it?”

Poonam asserted, “I don’t think I’ve ever crossed limits. I’ve always said more than I’ve done. I’ve seen so many posters and hoardings that are far more suggestive than mine. My posters have nothing scandalous in them. I haven’t shown my private parts,” she said.

Poonam admitted she was nervous because of the negative attention. She said, “People in this country give so much respect to a hardcore porn actress from abroad. Whereas I have never done anything that can be considered pornographic. Mere jaisi bechari si lakdi ko target kiya jaa rahi hai. I have never crossed limits.”

Poonam admitted there was a team working on her audacious image. Poonam’s journey into being an internet icon began when during the 2011 World Cup she spunkily vowed to streak if India won.

Recalling her initiation into super-notoriety Poonam laughed, “That was quite something. I never expected to get so much attention for it. That incident brought me into the limelight. But it went out of hand. I had 20-25 criminal cases against me. It took me a huge amount of effort to extricate myself from all the trouble. But you know what? It was worth it. That one incident got me more attention than I ever imagined.”

Also Read: When Poonam Pandey opened up about her bold choices: “If you have to survive, you cannot post n*** pictures”

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