‘As long as inhuman acts like rape, there is not going to be any peace or justice or equality or freedom. You are not going to become what you want to become or who you want to become. You are not going to live in the world you want to live in.’- Andrea Rita Dworkin (an American radical feminist and writer best known for her criticism of pornography, which she argued was linked to rape and other forms of violence against women). Barely four months ago, a 23-year-old physiotherapy student Jyoti Singh Pandey fought valiantly with her rapists before ending up in a hospital where she succumbed to her injuries leaving the entire country bereaved. Yet another gruesome rape story has hit the headlines. History, as far as rapes are concerned, seems to being repeating itself too frequently in New Delhi. Both these cases occurred in Delhi and once again citizens are protesting against this heinous act of crime. Your favourite TV actors too voiced their protest against this inhuman act. Their instant reaction was of shock and grief. Said Aakanksha Singh who plays Megha in Colors’ Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuch Kaha, “I am so horrified that I hardly have any words for this. It seems that there is no humanity left in the world. This incident has given me goose bumps.” Averred Sharad Kelkar, the anchor of Colors’ Shaitan- A Criminal Mind, “Such kind of a gruesome crimes show that people are crossing all pre-conceived limits of brutality.” Lamented Rupal Patel who plays Kokila in Star Plus’ Saath Nibhana Saathiya, “I think this is a very shameful and inhuman act.” Rukhsar Rehman who played Dr .Mallika on Kuch Toh Log Kahenge is also of the same opinion, “It is disheartening to hear of such a heinous crime,” she quipped. Regarding the punishment the rapist deserves, the TV actors felt that he deserved speedy punishment that should be none other than death penalty. Briefed Aakanksha, “The crime was so sick that the rapist should not be allowed to live. Crimes are getting gruesome with every passing day. The government should not delay in punishing the rapist.” Maninder Singh who plays Ranveer Rathore in Life OK’s 26-13 said, “Rapes keep on happening. People protest and once again we go back to square one. This time, a policeman slapped a protester which was appalling. This case needs to be tried in a fast Court. The rapist needs to be punished without any delay whatsoever.” Opined Sharad, “The rapist should be hanged till death. Such people are mentally sick. The Government should make very strict rules for cases like these so that crimes like this aren’t repeated.” Remarked Rukhsar, “Though I am a person who feels that people should be forgiven, we can’t be lenient in a case when a five-year-old has been raped. The rapist deserves a death punishment.” Hunar Hali who starred as Aditi in Colors’ Chhal — Sheh Aur Maat feels strongly about the whole incident. “I feel that the rapist should be hanged. Come on, she is after all a five-year-old,” she observed. When asked if the Government is to be blamed for this, the actors were varied in their opinion. “We shouldn’t go on simply blaming the government and the police for rapes. We, as parents, should raise children who are incapable of doing crimes like these. As citizens, we need to be alert too, so that we can prevent our children from being victims of crimes like these,” Rupal averred. Hunar seconds Rupal. “I can’t really blame the government for this particular case. Nevertheless, the government should work towards making Delhi a safer place. Delhi has many deserted streets which have no lighting. There should be more police check points in the city,” Hunar pointed out. Sharad is however unhappy with the Government. “After the Jyoti Pandey case, the Government had come up with many promises but the crime was repeated,” he went on to add. The little girl was raped by a neighbour and kidnapped when she was playing near her house. Should the parents have been more careful? Hunar strongly feels about this. “I think that parents should be even more careful about their kids’ safety especially after the earlier Dalhi rape case. Delhi, unlike Mumbai, is after all an unsafe city. Even if a person is a neighbour, he should not be trusted. The kids’ guardian should always be around when playing in a public place.” However Maninder felt that there should be open communication between parents and their children. “Parents should safeguard their kids. It isn’t just a neighbour who shouldn’t be trusted; parents should also be keeping an eye on the driver of a school bus. There should be open communication with the children so that they feel free to report anything which is going wrong with them.” Sharad, Aakanksha and Ruskhsar don’t think that there is a need to point fingers at the parents of kids. Shared Rukhsar, “Whereas it is true that parents need to be cautious, nobody has the right to rape anybody because the parents weren’t too careful. In fact, it should be a different matter whatsoever whether the parents were careful or not.” “Normally parents are worried about rape when their daughter enters the teens. They can hardly imagine that a five-year-old may be a victim of the crime too,” Aakanksha observed. Finally, Sharad sighed saying, “I am praying for the girl and her family. I don’t think the parents are at fault as you can’t keep children locked in the room all the time.” We too at Tellychakkar.com pray for the girl, her parents and for a safe and secure India.