The actor-singer responds by putting out a statement denying allegations; says he intends to ‘take it through the courts of law’
Nishi Tiwari (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 20, 2018)

"I used to love Ali Zafar until ten minutes ago,” a Twitter user in Pakistan posted a few hours after the renowned Meesha Shafi accused equally famous actor-singer and colleague Ali Zafar of sexual harassment on the site.

“Sharing this because I believe by speaking out about my own experience of sexual harassment, I will break the culture of silence that permeates through our society. It is not easy to speak out but it is harder to stay silent. My conscience will not allow it anymore,” the 36-year-old mother-of-two revealed on Thursday, appending with it a note that read, “I have been, on more than one occasion, subjected to sexual harassment of physical nature at the hands of a colleague from my industry: Ali Zafar. These incidences didn’t happen when I was younger, or entering the industry. This happened to me despite the fact that I am an empowered, accomplished woman who is known to speak her mind... a mother of two children.”

After telling Pakistan’s Dunya TV at 6 pm, “I don’t want to speak on the matter,” Zafar, 37, put out a statement at 7.30 pm: “I am a man who has stood up for myself, my family, my colleagues and friends countless times in the face of slander, defamation and general unkindness. I will do the same today. I have nothing to hide. Silence is absolutely not an option. I categorically deny any and all claims of harassment lodged against me by Ms Shafi. I intend to take this through the courts of law.”

In a classic case of old celeb tweets returning like bad karma, Twitter users went into overdrive, retweeting Zafar’s old posts exalting women and advocating gender equality, offset by others that reflected misogynistic undertones. Karachi-based journalist Omar R Quraishi, who clapped back to a tweet from Zafar dated July, 19, 2011 — “Liberty for women to watch topless men on the Lahore canal, however depriving men of the same. (Can’t believe I tweeted that),” with, “You shouldn’t have”, says this is just the tip of the iceberg.

“I’d expect more names to follow because sexual harassment is quite prevalent in Pakistan’s fashion and film/TV industry. Male models have also been victims,” he tells Mirror.

In the wake of Zafar’s restrained denial of the accusations, the scales have considerably tipped in his favour, at least online. While some noted that it is his word against hers, Zafar loyalists refused to believe that there could be even an iota of truth in Shafi’s claims.

Zafar hit pay dirt as a pop/rock musician in 2003 in his home country with the song “Channo”, from his debut album, Huqa Paani, which sold five million copies worldwide. In the years to follow, his fame crossed borders, paving way for a Bollywood debut in 2010 with Tere Bin Laden, which opened to moderate critical and commercial success, facilitating projects like Mere Brother Ki Dulhan (2011) opposite A-listers Katrina Kaif and Imran Khan, London, Paris, New York, Chashme Baddoor and more recently, the Alia Bhatt-starrer Dear Zindagi.

Zafar worked in a hotel lobby as a sketch artist, where he met his wife, Ayesha Fazli, and the couple wed in 2009. Their son Azaan was born in 2010 and daughter Alyza in 2015. Zafar reportedly has a no-kissing clause in his contract and the makers of London, Paris... had to use a body double for a sequence.

Since Shafi closed her note with the ‘me too’ hashtag, would it be too far off the mark to call this a watershed moment in Pakistani showbiz given both Shafi and Zafar’s celebrity status? “It’s not often that you see a big celebrity name accuse another celebrity of sexual harassment — and that too in Pakistan. Meesha Shafi must have thought carefully about the consequences of her going public, particularly to her own career as well and her own reputation since women who do something like this in Pakistani society are often judged harshly,” Quraishi points out.