The #MeToo Effect: Are Tanmay Bhat & Gursimran Khamba No Longer A Part Of AIB?

AIB has, in the past few days, given various statements regarding the harassment accusations against Utsav Chakraborty and now, Gursimran Khamba is also facing the spotlight for harassing a friend. The #MeToo movement seems to have finally found India as women are no longer afraid to call out powerful men. The co-founder of the organisation and CEO, Tanmay Bhat is said to be ‘stepping away’ from AIB for not taking the complaints against Utsav Chakraborty seriously and not acting on them when they were raised. 

All India Backchod has released an official statement regarding the current situation of the organisation on Instagram. They stated that Tanmay Bhat will be stepping away and Gursimran Khamba will face a temporary leave of absence.

Prior to this, AIB stated that it will be deleting all content containing the actor and comedian, Utsav. 

The floodgates opened earlier this week when various women on social media spoke up about Utsav sending them inappropriate messages on Snapchat. He even went as far as to send minor girls messages, asking them for ‘nudes’.

When asked about why Tanmay Bhat did not take any action against it, the comedian told a leading newspaper, “…everything that came during our conversations all feel like excuses in hindsight and fact of the matter is that we messed up. I should’ve ended ties then, and I didn’t, and it is my fault. I’m truly sorry. I should’ve acted stronger.”

And now, allegations against Gursimran Khamba have also been seen on social media. 

Is nothing sacred? As a woman, I’ve found myself asking this question all week as men in power continue to fall. It took a lot of courage for survivors to speak up against their harassers. And the fact that the AIB HR team is ready to acknowledge this situation is a (very) small spark of light.

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