How sensitive of you: Tillotama Shome reacts as fan mocks her fear for women safety

Actor Tillotama Shome has responded to a social media user who suggested she had “anxiety issues” after the actor wrote about worrying for a young woman she saw at a traffic signal in Mumbai’s Juhu. Shome’s original post, shared on Friday morning, wasn’t about something that had happened to the woman. It was about the fear that can exist even when, in that particular moment, nothing does.

The post drew a response from one user, whose comment was later deleted. According to Shome, the user told her that she appeared to have anxiety issues and should seek help from a doctor. He also questioned why she hadn't simply invited the woman into her car instead of writing about the incident on Instagram.

Shome responded directly.

“Welcome to the conversation. Thank you for your inputs. How sensitive of you,” she wrote. She went on to point out that anxiety affects many people and said she hoped the user would one day understand it better, adding that she hoped that understanding would extend to the women in his life.

Shome also addressed his question about why she hadn't asked the woman to get into her car. She said the thought had crossed her mind, but she worried the stranger might think she was “mad”.

She then pushed back against the suggestion that her post was simply an expression of privilege. “You are trying to turn this conversation towards my privilege. Am aware of it,” she wrote, adding that she had used public transport throughout her life until the Covid pandemic and had worked hard to earn the privilege she now has.

See the post here:

In a separate comment, Shome explained what the deleted message had said, paraphrasing it as: “It seems like you have anxiety issues, take help from a doctor. If you really cared you would have asked the girl to come and sit in your car, instead you made a post on Instagram.” She noted that the comment had also included several laughing emojis.

What did Tillotama Shome post?

In her post, Shome recalled seeing a young woman leaning against a railing at a Juhu traffic signal, casually scrolling through her phone as men walked past and looked at her. While she noted that there was “nothing offensive” about their behaviour, she still found herself watching and wanting the woman to stay alert, even as she wished she could “walk through life with trust”.

When another man walked “very close” to her, Shome considered getting out of her car, despite knowing there was no immediate reason to intervene. He walked past. Nothing happened. “This is Bombay, relax, relax,” she told herself.

But the moment stayed with her. After waking from a nightmare a few days later, she found herself wondering about women’s safety in hospitals too. Shome acknowledged that nothing had happened at the Juhu signal, but said that didn't erase the fear.

The larger concern behind Shome's post was not limited to the Juhu incident. She referred to repeated reports of rape, molestation, harassment and moral policing, including recent cases involving a 17-year-old in New Delhi and two students in Bihar whose harassment was recorded and circulated online.

Shome, known for films such as Monsoon Wedding and Qissa and the series Delhi Crime, was most recently seen in Netflix's Ikka, which released in July. Directed by Siddharth P Malhotra, the courtroom drama also stars Sunny Deol and Akshaye Khanna.