11 Times Bollywood Celebrities Shared Ordeals Of Being Sexually Abused When They Were Kids

There's hardly any woman who has not been harassed or molested in her life ever. We come across cases of sexual abuse almost on a daily basis. Men, on the other hand, often don't talk about it, but they are victims of sexual abuse too.

Here's a list of Bollywood celebrities - from Akshay Kumar and Anurag Kashyap to Deepika Padukone and Kangana Ranaut -- who have opened up on being molested when they were kids.

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(Trigger Warning: This piece is on sexual violence and may be triggering for some people. Reader discretion is advised.)

1. Neena Gupta

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In her autobiography, Sach Kahun Toh, Neena Gupta shared she was scared to tell her mother after she was molested by a doctor and a tailor during her school days. She revealed this happened she visited an optician with her brother who was told to sit in the waiting room while she went inside.

"The doctor started with examining my eye and then went down to check out other areas that were unconnected with my eye. I was scared stiff while it was happening and felt disgusted all the way home. I sat in a corner in the house and cried my eyes out when nobody was looking. But I didn't dare tell my mother about this because I was so scared that she would say that it was my fault. That I had probably said or done something to provoke him".

About the traumatic experience with the tailor, she said he was getting "too handsy" while taking measurements. After that incident, she didn't want to go back to him but was forced to. "Because I felt like I had no choice. If I told my mother that I didn¡¯t want to go to them, she would ask me why and I would have to tell her."

2. Akshay Kumar

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Akshay had once revealed an incident from his own life when he was touched inappropriately. "When I was six, I was on my way to a neighbour's house when the lift man touched my butt. I was really agitated and told my father about it. He filed a police complaint. Investigations revealed that the lift-man was a history-sheeter. The cops took action and the man was arrested. I was a shy kid and was relieved that I could speak about this to my parents. But even today, I find it difficult to say the word 'bum'".

3. Kalki Koechlin

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Kalki had once opened up on going through sexual abuse at the age of nine. "I allowed someone to have sex with me at the age of nine, not understanding fully what it meant and my biggest fear after was that my mother would find out. I felt it was my mistake and so I kept it hidden for years. If I had had the confidence or awareness to confide in my parents it would have saved me years of complexes about my own sexuality. It's important that parents remove the taboo around the word sex or private parts so kids can speak openly and be saved from potential abuse," she said.

4. Sonam Kapoor

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Daughter of Anil Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor became a victim of sexual abuse at the age of 13. The horrific incident took place when Sonam had gone to watch movie with her friends at Gaiety Galaxy Theatre in Mumbai. "There was a man who came from behind and just held my breasts like that. And obviously, I didn¡¯t have breasts at that time. I started shaking and shivering and I didn¡¯t know what was going on and I started crying right there," she said.

5. Deepika Padukone

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Deepika Padukone was just 14 ¨C 15 years old. Divulging details of the incident, Deepika said, "I remember one evening my family and I were walking down the street. We had probably finished eating at a restaurant. My sister and my father walked ahead and my mother and I were walking behind. And this man brushed past me. I could have, at that point, ignored, pretended like it didn¡¯t happen. I turned back, followed this person, caught him by the collar ¨C I was 14 ¨C in the middle of the street slapped him and walked away."

6. Fatima Sana Shaikh

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The actress who is winning praises for her role in Modern Love, Fatima Sana Shaikh was molested at the age of just three. "I was molested when I was just three years old. There is a stigma around the whole sexual abuse issue, which is why women don't open up about being exploited in life. But I hope the world changes. Today, there is awareness about it. Pehle toh yehi kaha jaata tha that don¡¯t speak about it. People will think about it differently."

7. Anurag Kashyap

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Anurag Kashyap had revealed he was a victim of sexual abuse for 11 long years when he was a kid. Revealing about the incident, Kashyap had then said, "I¡¯ve been a victim of child abuse for 11 long years... I met him after many years. He wasn't some dirty old man. He was 22 when he abused me. He was guilt-ridden when we met. I decided to put the whole nightmare behind me and move on. But it wasn't easy. I came to Mumbai brimming with angst, bitterness and a sense of violation and isolation. Thanks to the love of my life, Kalki Koechlin, I am completely cured of my acrimony."

8. Kubbra Sait

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Sacred Games actress Kubbra Sait was molested by a family friend when she was 17. She was made to believe that if she told her mom, her family would be destroyed, and so she kept mum and endured it. In her memoir, she said, "He drove down and took me to the hotel. He stroked my face and murmured about how tired I looked. Then, he kissed my lips. I was shocked and confused, but I couldn¡¯t utter a word. This was not supposed to happen, but it was happening. I should have screamed, but I could not. I should have run for help, but I was shell-shocked. The kiss grew. He convinced me it was what I wanted, that it would make me feel better. He kept repeating it until I felt deafened, and then he unbuckled his trousers. I was unsure of what exactly was happening, but I remember thinking, I am losing my virginity. It was a big deal, but it was also my shameful secret. Not the kind you could giggle and tell your girlfriends about."

9. Kangana Ranaut

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Kangana Ranaut recalled on her show Lock Upp how she was inappropriately touched as a child. "I have faced this. I was a child and a young boy from our town used to inappropriately touch me. At the time, I did not know what it meant, no matter how protective your family is, all kids go through this. This guy was three to four years elder than me, perhaps he was exploring his sexuality. He would call us, get us all to strip and check us. We would not understand it at the time. There is a huge stigma behind this, especially for men. It is very brave of you, Munawar, that you chose this platform to share your experience", she said.

10. Aditi Rao Hydari

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Aditi had revealed in a conversation with Indiatimes how she was petrified when she was touched by a stranger in a temple. "I was 15 and we were in Kerala to visit a temple where wearing a saree was compulsory. We all wore sarees and were waiting in the temple queue for darshan. That's when I felt somebody¡¯s hand on my stomach, and it happened three-four times. I turned back and held his hand and slapped him so hard, leaving the guy scared. He started saying ¡®what, what?' but I gave him an earful that he will remember for the rest of his life."

11. Preity Zinta

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The actress who is known for voicing opinions without any fear on the issues that she feels need to be addressed, opened up about the horrific incident when she was molested. "So, in school I went to girl school, there is no eve-teasing and all there. There were only Eves. But yes, when I went to Delhi, Yes! I¡¯ve got my butt pinched¡­and I was that, you know pink cheeks, very light skin and everybody would be like ooh and then they¡¯d try to tease me and stuff. And then I slapped a couple guys here and there. And then I think one day my brother told me, you are going to get killed, don¡¯t get into all this and then I moved to Mumbai and Mumbai was great,¡± she told Bollywood Life.

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