"Ridiculous disgusting appalling" - Twitter user Meeta Sharma summed up in three words the reaction of everyone who had laid eyes on what was, very evidently, a Nirbhaya-inspired 'fashion shoot'.
Photographer Raj Shetye's editorial shoot, which was uploaded online some days ago, went viral on Tuesday and caused uproar for glamourising an incident which still hits a raw nerve in Delhi. Though the parallels between the shoot and the bus gang rape aren't hard to draw — you'd have to be blind not to see it — Raj Shetye denied to Delhi Times that it had anything to do at all with Nirbhaya.
"I have been getting a number of calls regarding this, I don't know how to react. The shoot is not based on the Nirbhaya incident. It is just a depiction of the situation of women in our country right now . It is my personal work, not for any commercial value. I have taken the shoot down from my official site. I'm a working professional and I don't want hate messages on Facebook and Twitter," he told us.
Shetye, who seemed to have toned down his stance by the time we called him, was earlier quoted by Buzzfeed as proudly proclaiming the concept as "my baby", and saying, "The aim is to create art that will gather some reaction in society. On a personal level, too, I got many reactions. It makes me feel satisfied about my work - at least the work I did is so impactful that I'm able to shed some light on this. I don't feel happy, but it makes me feel satisfied." Jitin Gulati, a model who featured on the shoot, had also tweeted a link with "Check out new work on my @Behance portfolio: "Editorial Shoot".
The online page disappeared soon after we spoke to Shetye, but it was too late to do anything about the hate messages. The flak came from multiple quarters, including from the likes of Vishal Dadlani, Purab Kohli and fashion designer Nachiket Barve:
- Vishal Dadlani: Did I just see a fashion-spread depicting the Delhi gangrape of Nirbhaya? Disgusting! I hope all associated, die of shame! Insensitive swine! Whoever you are Behance and Jitin, I hope you go to jail for this.
- Nachiket Barve: "You think you've seen everything. A Nirbhaya-themed fashion shoot. Wow. PUKE!"
- Ankit Mahajan: "Whoever you are Behance and Jitin, I hope you go to jail for this. @jitin0804 & @Behance u bastards . bloody shame on u rascals."
This is what the outraged fashion community told us:
Fashion is always a reflection of social issues; sometimes it can also be provocative, titillating — it also depicts desire. You can also draw attention to social issues through it. But certain things should be off limits - things like child abuse and gang-rape, as in this case. I think it's a case of really bad judgment, a loss of perspective. Some creative people, in pushing the boundaries, overstep them.
- Nachiket Barve (designer)
I get how photography is an art and is open to interpretation. But this is completely distasteful. Nirbhaya as an issue was so major and everyone was so seriously affected. People are still trying to get over the pain and hurt of the incident. And the worst part is, you're making models act as rapists. That means you're treating these criminals like heroes. That's just pathetic. You can't get away by calling that 'so fashionable'.
- Amit Ranjan (model)
I'm shocked! After all the shouting and protesting, one guy goes and does this? First they shoot a woman in this set-up, and then make the rapists look glamorous! How can this be art?
- Sapna Bhavnani, who starred in the play Nirbhaya
Copyright: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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