Tourist Woman Groped While Filming In Rajasthan

A video recently uploaded by a British couple on their YouTube channel "Escape With Us" shows them walking through the streets of Rajasthan. While the male partner was filming as they walked, a creep who could possibly have been a local or a tourist guide harassed the woman by touching her inappropriately.

The harasser identified himself as Dr Kuldeep Singh Sisodhaya, aka Kuldeep Kundan, a poet and apparently a Ph.D. holder in literature. He suddenly started walking with the couple, claiming that he liked socialising with foreign couples because they appreciate Indian culture and literature.

Woman Tourist Groped in Rajasthan

As the harasser gradually begins touching the woman’s hand, she is visibly uncomfortable, and her male partner also seems to find the behaviour weird. At one point, the harasser is talking about Indian culture and society and casually tries touching the woman’s upper arm and groping her breasts before she brushes him off and politely asks him to leave. The man insisted on walking with them inside the hotel and pressured them to take down his number.

The couple seemed to have handled the situation pretty smoothly, but back in their room, they seemed visibly disturbed by the creepy behaviour. At the end of the video, when the male tourist is talking about the creepy behaviour they encountered, the woman comes in and says, "If you come to India, expect to be manhandled and groped."

As an Indian, watching this video made me feel disgusted and ashamed of the kind of impression we are leaving on foreign tourists. A handful of creeps roaming around the country completely destroyed it in seconds. This is not the first time a foreign woman has been stalked or harassed in public by locals. In April 2023, a Korean female blogger was walking down the streets of Rajasthan’s Jodhpur when a local man randomly flashed his private parts and was seen shamelessly smiling.

Many such incidents have taken place earlier, and in those cases, the woman was alone. In the recent viral video, the woman was accompanied by a male companion who was recording the whole incident, but that didn’t seem to stop the harasser from groping the woman. From where do these men get the audacity to behave in such inappropriate ways? Do these creeps think people from Western countries would be okay with random men harassing them?

Are Women Safe Even In With Male Companions?

From a very young age, girls are told not to go out alone to avoid being attacked by perpetrators. Even today, male family members accompany the women of their house when they need to step out during the late hours. Women are told to cover up, not to step out at night, not to go out without a trustworthy male companion, and more. But did any of that really stop women from being harassed? Nirbhaya case is one heartwrenching example that, to date, reminds us of how women are never safe in the country, regardless of where they are or who they are with.

Coming back to this video, did being a foreign tourist walking along with her male companion in broad daylight with a camera recording the entire incident make any difference for this woman? Could she evade harassment? When is society going to realise that it’s never about the woman and that the real problem lies with pervy creeps walking around the country?

What is going to take for people to start calling out creepy behaviour in men instead of blaming women for every other injustice that happens to them? When is society going to stop curbing women’s freedom under the guise of protecting them and start raising respectful men?

Suggested Reading: Korean Blogger Harassed In Rajasthan: Man Stalks And Flashes Private Parts At The Woman