Actress Esha Deol on Monday stirred a row when she virtually linked rape incidents to provocative clothing worn by the victims.
“Girls should dress decently (to avoid sexual assaults),” she told reporters at Raigarh, nearly 150 km from here.
She was in Raigarh to give a dance performance at the 10-day Chakradhar Samaroh, a music and dance festival being organised every year by the Chhattisgarh government in honour of former Maharaja Chakradhar Singh, a connoisseur of music.
Daughter of veteran actors Dharmendra and Hema Malini, Esha further surprised the mediapersons present by suggesting her antidote for rape, “In my opinion, Bangkok-type dance bars should be opened (in India, where pleasure-seeking men can be satisfied, thus leaving the women and girls safe on the road)”.
Her comments invited sharp reactions from social activists, particularly women, here.
“Esha has put the blame on the rape victims by suggesting dress code for them. It is really unfortunate that a celebrity like her could make such a comment,” an NGO activist here said.