Actor Maya Krishnan accused of sexual harassment by theatre artiste

In an extremely detailed post on Facebook, Ananya Ramaprasad said that she is the victim of sexual, mental and emotional manipulation, abuse, and gaslighting and she named Maya S Krishnan as the abuser. 

In her post, Ananya said: “I think if my abuser were a man it would have been easier for me to realise and understand the extent of what I was being subjected to, but because it came from a woman, it made it much harder to identify, and even accept what was happening to me. I first met my abuser in 2016, when I just turned 18 and she was 25, during rehearsals for my first ever production. I was a complete novice in every respect – personally and professionally. She was supposedly a rising star in the entertainment circle. So, when she took an interest in me during rehearsals, and told me that with her mentorship I could be the next big thing, I trusted her completely.”

She went to add that Maya took control of her life, and said she was manipulated into a sexual relationship. “She lived alone, and we used to sleep on the same bed, completely platonically. At least at first. She then began to cuddle with me, kiss my forehead. then escalated things slowly, kissing my neck, cheeks, and eventually, me. I felt scared and trapped. I started having anxiety attacks and emotional breakdowns nearly every day.”  The post goes on to name other people in the theatre circuit and implies that there are other victims and cover-ups. Ananya ends her note by saying. “I refuse to stay silent any longer, #timesup Maya S Krishnan. I will be taking this up with the ICC.”(sic)

Talking to DTNext, Maya S Krishnan said, “I deny all the allegations mentioned in Ananya’s post. I have already filed a case against her and the organisation that named and defamed me, and inquiries are underway by the police.” She also wrote on her FB page saying, “I had not mentioned anything about Ananya previously, other than to closest friends and family, as I had considered the mental health of the 18-year-old and was trying to help her to the best of my abilities. I strongly condemn such immoral and unethical behaviour on the part of Ananya and the organization, which has and continues to cause mental trauma to me and my family.” 

While Ananya wasn’t available for comment, her dad Ramaprasad spoke to us, “She needs rest and she is not willing to talk about this anymore. We are not filing any complaint as well. It’s just a post and she want to let people know about it.”

This is possibly only the second case where a woman has been accused of harassment by another woman, the first one being Comic-host Kaneez Surka accused comedienne Aditi Mittal of sexually harassing her in 2016 at an event. Surka alleged that during a comic show which she was hosting, Mittal walked up to her on stage and forcefully kissed her. Mittal later apologised for the incident.