Daily Times

KARACHI: After numerous walkouts from nominated celebrities over a harassment case, Lux Style Awards (LSAs) 2019 Film Jury released their statement on Wednesday, “Over the past 18 years, the LSAs have been nurturing Pakistani excellence in fashion, films, music and drama. Over these two decades, the LSA nominations have been decided by an unbiased, independent and transparent jury of industry peers and critics. Neither the LSAs, nor Unilever Pakistan has ever intruded into the independence of the Jury’s decision. The LSA’s Jury takes pride in this legacy of merit and authenticity, which have stood the test of time. In 2019, the LSAs have been surrounded by dialog around nominees involved in a matter of alleged sexual harassment. The LSA Film jury joins the Lux brand and Unilever Pakistan in condemning all acts of intolerance, discrimination or harassment. However, it’s also important to emphasise that the decisions of the Film Jury were based on an assessment of the merits of the cinematic work. We do not consider any other extraneous issues related to the personal characters or actions of people associated with that work. The Film Jury of the LSAs appreciates the sensitivity of the subject and recognises the intensity of public sentiment. Nevertheless, it’s also important to respect that the case is being decided by Pakistan’s judicial system. We’ve complete faith in the law of the land and believe that justice will prevail.”

Choreographer and publicist Frieha Altaf broke her silence on Thursday over LSA nominations and the sexual harassment case.

She posted her concerns on her Instagram saying, “The #MeinBhi Movement is not a one off. The struggle to ensure a safer workplace will be a lifetime effort. My #LSA turf is the LSA show and the stage, not the nominations that are done by independent juries. No one has a say in what the jury decides. But I can state very clearly that if I do #LSA2019 it will reflect all the values that I uphold. I had every intention of including the song #Mein in the show flow and was in discussion with @MeeshaShafi before she was even nominated and then stepped out. Even today, the entire show flow will reflect and uphold all the #meinbhi values. In my opinion, if anybody should step down, it’s the alleged harasser, not those who are innocent and oppose him. The LSA platform and event is very close to my heart and I will continue to fight, on my turf, for women’s rights and empowerment.”

Last year, the socialite kick-started the campaign #MeinBhi, in solidarity with sexual harassment victims.

Frieha Altaf also added, “I’d seen and read enough to know that I had to take stock and not allow myself to continuously be abused. I’ve gone through it all. I’ve been through marriages, I’ve been abandoned, I’ve been stood up at my wedding and I’ve been cheated on but I got the courage to fix it and get out of it.”

Supermodel-turned-actress Iman Ali came up with an advice.

She took to Instagram and urged all those who have decided to walk away from the awards to see the other side of the story.

“Our sense of entitlement to quickly judge anyone and jump to conclusions is worrisome, especially in this age of social media. A platform that has made it too easy for some to become a part of a controversy or join a bandwagon and become famous overnight; potentially ruining someone’s life or body of work in minutes,” Iman Ali wrote using hashtag #MyTake.

She advised all those who have boycotted the awards that “fame and respect should be earned with hard work in time, not by childish walk outs and social media posts playing judge, jury and executioner”.

Later, when LSA too issued a statement clarifying their stance on the issue, Ali posted the same as “summary of what I was saying from a neutral point of view”.

The LSA statement said that the jury, “appreciates the sensitivity of the subject and recognises the intensity of public sentiment. Nevertheless, it is also important to respect that the case is being decided by Pakistan’s judicial system”.

It’s pertinent to note that in April 2018, singer and actress Meesha Shafi in a post shared on micro-blogging site Twitter, claimed that she’d been subjected to sexual harassment “of a physical nature” by Ali Zafar on multiple occasions.

She used the hashtag #MeToo to link it with an international movement against sexual harassment and assault.

Though the matter is sub judice, the singer and a number of other local celebrities have walked away from LSAs due to Ali Zafar’s nomination for Best Actor award.

‘Our sense of entitlement to quickly judge anyone and jump to conclusions is worrisome, especially in this age of social media. A platform that has made it too easy for some to become a part of a controversy or join a bandwagon and become famous overnight; potentially ruining someone’s life or body of work in minutes,’ Iman Ali wrote on Instagram