News Special Reports Tamil Nadu

From Getting Convicted For Rape To Getting Slammed For Disgusting Remarks On Tamannah And Trisha: The Many Controversies Of Mansoor Ali Khan

November 20, 2023
The Commune

Kollywood actor Mansoor Ali Khan spoke to the press recently and made a highly inappropriate comment about Trisha, expressing remorse for missing an opportunity for an intimate scene with her and referencing his involvement in ‘rape’ scenes.

While discussing his experience shooting for Vijay-starrer Leo, Mansoor Ali Khan stated, “When I heard that I was acting with Trisha, I thought there would be a bedroom scene in the film. I thought that I could carry her to the bedroom just like I did with other actresses in my earlier movies. I have done so many rape scenes in a number of movies and it’s not new to me. But these guys didn’t even show Trisha to me on the sets during the Kashmir schedule.”

Trisha Response

Actor Trisha condemned the statement saying, “A recent video has come to my notice where Mr.Mansoor Ali Khan has spoken about me in a vile and disgusting manner.I strongly condemn this and find it sexist,disrespectful,misogynistic,repulsive and in bad taste.He can keep wishing but I am grateful never to have shared screen space with someone as pathetic as him and I will make sure it never happens for the rest of my film career as well. People like him bring a bad name to mankind.”

NCW Response

The National Commission for Women took cognisance of the matter and directed the Tamil Nadu Director General of Police (DGP) to book the actor. They posted on their X handle, “The National Commission for Women is deeply concerned about the derogatory remarks made by actor Mansoor Ali Khan towards actress Trisha Krishna. We’re taking suo motu in this matter directing the DGP to invoke IPC Section 509 B and other relevant laws. Such remarks normalize violence against women and must be condemned.”

Previous Controversies

Mansoor Ali Khan has been convicted of rape and sentenced to jail for 7 years. According to a Times of India report, Mansoor Ali Khan was arrested on 11 December 1998 based on a complaint by a woman named Sneha Sharma. In 2001, he received a seven-year rigorous imprisonment sentence after being convicted by the Principal Sessions Court in the alleged rape case. According to the chargesheet, Khan advertised in newspapers for a woman secretary for his real estate business, with Sneha Sharma applying for the position.

On 8 December 1996, Khan took her to a hotel in Vadapalani, Tamil Nadu, where he drugged her drink, causing her to lose consciousness. Subsequently, he committed the act of rape. Despite this, Khan later appointed her as his secretary and engaged in a sexual relationship with her, all the while promising marriage. When Sneha Sharma became pregnant and urged him to fulfill his promise, he responded with threats to her life. Judge Kumar not only imposed a seven-year sentence on Khan but also levied a fine of ₹3 lakhs. This amount is mandated to be paid to the victim, covering her maintenance and the child born as a result of the accused’s actions. However, the Madras High Court set aside his jail sentence but ordered him to pay ₹3.25 lakh to the woman and ₹7 lakh for the child. His appeal against the Madras High Court order was dismissed by Supreme Court. 

However, in 2012, Mansoor Ali Khan proved in the Madras High Court that the accusations made by the women were false. Subsequently, the court directed the woman to pay ₹50 lakh as compensation to Mansoor Ali Khan.

However, in the same year, he encountered another legal issue, this time related to allegations of land-grabbing. The charges implicated him in the unauthorized construction of a 16-storey building in Arumbakkam, Chennai, leading to his arrest.

In 2018, incarcerated in Salem Central prison, he staged a day-long fast to protest the Salem–Chennai green corridor project and the dismissal of his bail application by an Omalur court. The Theevattipatti police had arrested the actor earlier for delivering defamatory speeches in villages around Kaamalapuram in May of that year. During these speeches, he threatened to attack authorities if they attempted to acquire farmland for an eight-lane road project. Later the Omalur judicial magistrate court denied the actor’s bail request. Khan initiated the fast in the morning but terminated it in the evening following intervention by prison officials, according to sources. Around this time, he had also stated that for Naam Tamizhar Katchi, going to jail is akin to visiting a temple.

Earlier this year, he spoke derogatorily about Tamannah’s dance moves for the song Kavaalaa in the film Jailer. Discussing the censorship situation in Tamil Nadu concerning his film Saraku, Khan voiced his dissatisfaction with the edits and alterations mandated by the Censor Board. Mansoor raised the issue of Kaavaalaa, questioning the approval of the song and expressing disdain for its quality. Mansoor brought up Kaavaalaa and questioned how the song was permitted, adding that the song was awful. Speaking to the press he said, “In a song called Kavaalaa, they stretch their legs like this and show their hands like this and take them all the way down. Kavala, Ra, Ra. I didn’t take anything sexy like that. They won’t listen. They are all manifestations of slavery. It is a very bad movement. It looks like they are putting their hands in their pockets and pushing them down.”

Mansoor Ali Khan indulged in fear-mongering by spreading vaccine misinformation by associating actor Vivek’s death with the COVID-19 vaccine. Alleging that local authorities and governments were collectively involved in ‘murder’ through vaccine administration, he spread fear about the vaccination process. In response, the Madras High Court instructed the Tamil film supporting actor to pay a fine of ₹2 lakh to the state government for disseminating false information about the COVID-19 vaccine.

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