Indian born designer Anand Jon, who has been in the news recently for all the wrong reasons..Rape and felony, after having been granted bail , has been re-arrested in the face of fresh charges of rape instigated against him.
Its sickening to imagine a personal life so bereft of values and plagued with compulsions of the kind.
However, something seems amiss. Considering his rather impressive CV his high profile life , being surrounded by the most desirable models on a daily basis, necessity to rape for sexual favors seems outlandish..unless he revels in this kind debauchery as a matter of habit!
Does a designer whose partial clientele include
” Nadja Swarovski of Swarovski crystals, Emmy award winners Lynn Whitfield & Susan Lucci, musician Alanis Morrisette, Mary J Blige, Mya, the Artsit formerly known as Prince, MTV’S Ananda Lewis, Courtney Love, Shashi Tripathi: the Consul General of India, TV’s Gina Torres (Cleopatra 2525), Grammy Nominee Cherokee.”
And who is ” Picked by the Prime Minister of India Mr Vajpayee Anand Jon has joined the ranks of “50 Most influential N.R Indians in the world”
then proceed to de-humanise and open himself to dis- repute with misdemeanours like rape?
Also, if one has been fed on tales of casting couch in the glamour industry, fashion or films, where favors of the ‘career kind’ are easily granted after favors of the ‘bedroom kind’ are catered to, then wherefore lies the veracity of these aeon ole stories? I mean, if women are willingly acceding to if not initiating ‘favours , then why the need for Rape?!
And why are the women, allegedly victimised, emerging out of the woodwork all of a sudden? Safety in numbers or security in numbers.. as in dollars??
For consensual sex to be transformed into a charge of rape, the sole pre-requisite is a devious mind instigated by a hidden agenda! One also hears of the women having returned to work for/with him..after the rape!! Its not as if he was the last name in the fashion industry!!
Look, before this gets turned on its head into something not intended ( which happens Oh! so often in the blogosphere.. you opine about an alternate POV and you are branded..not that it bothers me ) an excuse for a rapist..let me clarify the following.
a) I hate rapists.
b) I have not purchased his clothing range, nor that of his sisters ( Sanjana Jon).
c) I don’t know him from adams!
One is just troubled over the thought that this ‘witch hunt’ in fact might be either a vendetta/retribution saga, or a competitors move to demolish Jons chances ( if found guilty on all charges could be sentenced for life)
Roman Polanski underwent much the same controversy. Most were of the opinion that it was fabricated. Life for a celebrity is much like a crown of thorns. It preempts the need for steely nerves! The price for fame and success is oftentimes, forbidding.
Read through the details provided in the links. It seems preposterous. If this guy was busy raping the number of women he was supposed to have raped, ( number gone up to 46 and counting) then for Petes sake when did he find the time and if I may add , the energy for ‘designing’?
I may be totally off the mark here and I suspect a teenie weenie minority who believe in not believing what meets the eye, but it was too glib, convenient and contrived an accusation. Maybe he does suffer from the ‘glad eye’ syndrome, maybe he is fond of women, like all heterosexual, un married males, but that does not automatically make him into a monster!!
Ever heard of mob lynching? This seems a bonsai’d version of the same!
Courts determine fates?
Sachiniti 
There should be speedy investigation in these kind of cases ..reputation at stake .It shouldn’t take too long to prove whether he is guilty or not or if there was any conspiracy etc…take the case of Bob woolmer ,earlier police claimed it was a murder and now they closed the case saying natural death…
Comment by Aneesh — June 13, 2007 @ 4:53 pm |
Two things.
One, RP was indeed an ass. He was lucky he got away with just one charge against him.
Two, a lot of NRIs in USA, even those in creative world (including fashion) do not posses the relative finesse when it comes to the opposite sex. The American mind registers this at times as being awkward and at other times as being pushy. Perhaps he just tried a little more than what is considered acceptable. Ofcourse now that a possible settlement is an option, there will be all kinds of weirdos out of the woodwork re accessing their contact with Anand Jon.
Ofcourse rape and sexual harassment is a serious matter. I have no right commenting on this without full knowledge.
Comment by Shaan Khan — June 13, 2007 @ 5:24 pm |
I have been to two sites so far and both have made mince of Jon. They are tearing him to shreds as if they have been personally raped.
I cannot be sure of his crime after what I have read on the links and your take on it..yeah we should give him the benefit of the doubt. If what Shaan has said is true then ofcourse now that money is being offered, all the women are coming in hordes, accusing him and nobody has the sense to see that.
This world is scary!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Comment by Neha — June 13, 2007 @ 8:36 pm |
Yeah aneesh..that is the reason I closed the post wondering if you do get justice in courts or is it after all ‘blind’?
Shaan ..somebody who could make ‘Rosemarys baby”..one of my abs faves.. such harsh words for him! Why? tell me more.
Your second point set me thinking.. read the reports and what the girls have to say and it appears exactly so.. But since when is pushy also menat to be ‘rape’? And of course these girls were there because they wanted to be there. Perhaps what they meant was there wasnt enough wooing and cooing.. and he kinda got down to business maybe..but that does not constitute violence. Its a serious charge. There fore none of us have a right to cast aspersions merely coz he has been arrested.. the verdict is not out.
Neha.. why am I not surprised!! We are often ready to condemn without being privy to ‘nothing’..when in doubt, give leeway..is my motto.. dont set rigid rules and holier than thou moralistic standards..it isnt right.
Comment by kaveetaakaul — June 13, 2007 @ 8:56 pm |
From what I know (otherwise I would not say anything), PR was a sicko. That does not mean that was was not good at his craft. I personally liked ChinaTown a lot too. But In USA we have this thing for moral issues. We discarded Micheal Jackson as soon as it become known that he had this things for boys. Again we are a nation which took Clinton to task for his affair with Monica ( My French associates would laughing at us for not being grown up about the Clinton issues). We cannot accept an icon who has a flawed moral character (Read Big B). This is very unique about USA.
Regarding Anand Jon, he will have to settle eventually. Fighting a legal battle is expensive and never ending and will kill his career. Legal victory is no victory, only the attorney battling the case wins. Hence at some point in our career in USA we all sacrifice our personalities and our normal behavior and adhere to a strict protocol. A protocol dictated by our attorneys and our human resources department.
It is very possible that Anand Jon is innocent but that does not address the fact that he is stupid. You cannot mix business and pleasure.
Comment by Shaan Khan — June 13, 2007 @ 10:09 pm |
Kav
In USA under assumed names we try to be humorous in the cyber world. In our daily life we keep a distance from everyone, we say only the sensible thing and speak only when we must. AJ is learning this reality the hard way. I feel sorry for him but not really.
Comment by Shaan Khan — June 13, 2007 @ 10:13 pm |
Hmmm..I get it. Thats exactly what it is in USA..and obviously those out to get him for whatever reasons are equally well versed in the harassment of protracted judicial procedures and exorbitant costs involved. So they have got him nice n proper. And he perhaps is paying the price for not being savvy enough..Strait jacketed behaviour conforming to the accepted code was what he hadnt paid enough attention to..Stifling really!! And your French colleagues were quite right. Hypocrisy is rampant out there. You are a prude until proven otherwise..wow!!
Comment by kaveetaakaul — June 13, 2007 @ 10:34 pm |
On second thoughts Shaan being conversant in the ways of the west, why is not the average citizen quite understanding his plight. they have as if conducted a trial by media and indicted him..whilst to someone like me, for example , that this is a frame-up seems almost as clear as day.
Comment by kaveetaakaul — June 13, 2007 @ 10:37 pm |
A man like Newt Gingrich who was once as powerful as the President of USA quietly resigned when it became known that he was having an affair.
Kevin Costner is not that popular anymore not just because he is aging but also because he is a leach. His fans abandoned him.
USA is not unforgiving about these matters. You can fail financially but not morally. I remember during Clinton days a friend from Bollywood told me of a former CM of Maharashtra who had been accused of raping his own daughter-in-law and yet carried on as if nothing had happened. Of course you have THE infamous case in Bollywood of an aging icon who in his middle age years had affairs (and even made a movies about his Silsila) and yet did not loose a single fan (not even a feminist fan).
It will not make sense to anyone outside USA but within USA such issues are a very big deal. If you are accused of rape or harrasement even your former shadow disappears.
Comment by Shaan Khan — June 14, 2007 @ 12:06 am |
Strange isnt it! Our Senas are causing mayhem over Valentines day and kissing is taboo whether in films or on Bandstand..but yet as a a nation we look the other way when sexual exploits become public, we even vote them back to power!! While as in USA , permissiveness is a given yet moral standards are high..Or lets say, they want the charade to be maintained of a squeaky clean image for their icons. So the rule is ‘Do whatever you want, but dont get caught, coz if you do , we are not with you’.
Quite an ostrich-head-buried-in-sand attitude if you ask me. .and also pseudo moralistic. I guess we are more human here and accept the fallibilities of mortals. Never looked at India as an ‘accepting’ country, but am beginnning to view it differently. Although the pitfalls are enormous as well. When moral standards are decadent, rot creeps in at all levels!
Comment by kaveetaakaul — June 14, 2007 @ 7:51 am |
Sure the cost of being caught is very severe in USA. But please do not think this is a charade. In my travels I have found that an average American is more honest and righteous than anyone else, anywhere. An average American is a very decent person completely immersed in his career, family and local community.
At my school (i.e. graduate college), fresh off the boat Desis would always lament how difficult it was to get “some action”. I was always horrified when these guys (after learning that I was born in India) would request me to set them up with a “sure shot”. Initially I even bothered to make a few understand that they would have to learn to feel for someone, before they got a chance to feel that someone. After I while I just gave up. I guess overseas people see MTV and think that is USA. In reality USA is a very different. We are the only country in the secular western world that proudly proclaims that “In God We Trust”. Early Americans lived a bell ring away from a Church. Cities, towns and communities were formed around a church. Even today most socialization in USA is through Church communities (well add Synagouges, Mosques & Temples communities).
Hence please don’t believe this is all a sham. This is for real. Therefore my advice to Anand Jon would be to settle as soon as possible and move on. I don’t know what happened in his case (whether he did something or not) but he should have known better.
Comment by Shaan Khan — June 14, 2007 @ 8:30 am |
Thought provoking..really really..need to mull over this one.
Comment by kaveetaakaul — June 14, 2007 @ 8:36 am |
If indeed what you state is true of the majority, then its been quite a revelation Shaan. I must confess that having travelled the world over, I never once got this feeling except in Israel where I saw a kibbutz and the values they lived by. It struck a deep chord of disenchantment over what we face in India.
If one is to go by tales we heard from our parents , then the America of today is perhaps close to what India was pre-partition..ethics intact, strong backbone of unshakable value system and a moral code not as much enforced as voluntarily adhered to. Then came Independence, shattering of dreams, economic failure, disillusionment and it cracked the nerve center of our Society. Today, money is the sole criteria by which merit is evaluated.You have it you are good, kind merciful.. you dont then not only do you metamorph into a monster to gain access to it, but are also viewed as one..
Yesterday I saw the gut wrenching visual of a woman breathing her last, relating the manner of her death. Her hands and feet were bound by her husband, while the mother in law poured kerosene over her.. they fled and through the kitchen window threw in a matchstick to set her to flames. Why? Dowry..No.. extortion!! She refused to go back for the umpteenth time to her father for their demands. this time it was 3 lakhs besides the huge amount given at her wedding. this tape was presented in the Court on the basis of which the two were sentenced. had there not been evidence, like the lakhs of others who have gone without vindication, hers would have been a lost death as well.
The needs and greed of the average citizen far exceeds their ability to earn.. who is to blame?
Comment by kaveetaakaul — June 14, 2007 @ 6:30 pm |
As pointed out earlier, rot has set in, decadence has taken over all spheres.. the basis of it all is economic backwardness. If one is to go by the number of temples in India it belies any doubt of a violent and struggling society..but its a sham I guess. Prayer is another form of mendicancy.. piety a forgotten virtue. I am sure that m-I-L must have spent a god part of her daily routine in the temple room!
Comment by kaveetaakaul — June 14, 2007 @ 6:37 pm |
Kav
Take Paris Hilton. No where in the world can you imagine her going to Prison. A certain fellow in Bollywood killed people while drunk driving and he is still making movies.
I too had a very bad habit of driving extremely fast. They say I have a lead foot. After few speeding tickets (mostly obtained in the very neighborhood that I generally reside over the week-ends), the judge who knew me very well assigned me to community service. Given my ability to smooth talk and my general very likable appearance/personality he assigned me to an Inter-Faith service. I went there screaming but ended up learned something in return. Although my penalty is over, I now volunteer some hours every week without fail (regardless of my work schedule). I now drive in the slow lane behind slow moving bus or trucks. I can guarantee you that given the nature of the relationship between the judge and me, I would have been able to void the ticket in any other place in the world, but not America.
Steve Forbes, editor in chief of Forbes magazine. He lives in Central New Jersey and uses the Newark airport most of the time. Never will you see him throwing his weight and asking to be given a preferential treatment at the airport. He stands in line like everyone else and checks ins or boards like everyone else. This is how most celebrities are in USA. Surely in some cases for various reason there is some special treatments also but that is rare.
President Bush (Sr). If you visit his home in Texas he would be at time cooking a meal for his wife and even doing the laundry. People are so amazed overseas that we do our own mundane work (including clean our own toilets).
Although we are not perfect, USA is till the heaven on earth. Good values and very decent people. No one has the time for mischief. I rather preserve this than worry about Anand Jon.
Comment by Shaan Khan — June 14, 2007 @ 7:11 pm |
Shaan when you said ‘ Hence at some point in our career in USA we all sacrifice our personalities and our normal behavior and adhere to a strict protocol. A protocol dictated by our attorneys and our human resources department.”
That to me was the crux of the matter. Judiciary is alive and well in the USA.. it has served as a deterrent in making people wary of getting on the wrong side of the law. It cannot be bought and what is a mere sham in India ‘ Under the law all men are equal’ is a reality in America.
A fair and free judiciary ensures a disciplined Nation.
Comment by kaveetaakaul — June 15, 2007 @ 11:40 am |
This is not India, we are in US the land of the brave and just where rape perpetuators do not go free.. Apparently Anand came to US at 17, with the Indian concept of good female. The one who has to protect her virginity, for the man to come. And while she does that her man to come is free to have all sorts of adventures and partners. It has been confirmed that he treated the girls badly and referred to them as bitches, oh they arenot keeping thier hymen intact. :).I had tears in my eyes when a 15 year old girls parents let thier daughter go to him and find out he raped her.And the mother was a psychologist. He should go to prison for life, he can plenty of sex from the big men there , only thing is he may be in the girls role who all he molested without any remorse.
Comment by shreya — November 16, 2007 @ 2:50 am |
Shaan Khan,
You are stupid to post on this forum holding yourself a little too highly maybe!? Look man, I know thousands
of asses like you from (India, Pakistan, Middle East and maybe Latin America) who consider themselves good-looking and
smooth talking. Nothing can be far from the truth. Looking at the fact that you cannot even frame correct sentences in English,
I find it hard to believe that you could smooth-talk or charm a judge. Also remember that Anand Jon too considered himself too cool, too handsome, too smart, smooth talker etc etc. and look what he got himself into. Whether or not he is guilty will be proven by the court soon but there is no doubt that this man thought the world of himself and was in fact conceited. So don’t et too big for your boots and learn something from this!
Summit
Comment by Summit — September 16, 2008 @ 8:53 am |
I am glad Anand Jon got what awaited him. I am sure he did force himself on these young girls with false promises. I also agree that most Indian men who come to the USA feel that American women are loose and they can get
them easily and if not force themselves on them. Serves him right. May he rot in Jail.
Comment by Barb — November 16, 2010 @ 12:47 am |
poor chap, let God help him..
Comment by gita — December 2, 2012 @ 11:57 pm |