Alefia Kapadia was driving through a congested Dharavi stretch on a bustling Saturday evening, when this man drove up to her car, made lewd advances, scratched her vehicle, and even tried opening its door, before driving off
A television actress’s drive back home along a congested stretch of the city on Saturday evening was interrupted by a disturbing encounter with a fellow motorist, who drove up close to her car, passed inappropriate remarks, and when met with resistance, scratched her car, blocked her path, and even tried to open the door to the vehicle, before driving away.
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Alefia Kapadia (28) is best known for her role as Latika in the popular soap opera Pyaar Ka Dard Hai Mitha Mitha Pyaara Pyaara. She later filed an FIR at Shahu Nagar police station. Around 6 pm on Saturday evening, she was driving home to Byculla from Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) via Dharavi, which was packed with traffic. Her four-year-old child was in the car with her, as was a female friend.
The car’s windows were rolled down. Suddenly, a man in a Chevrolet with the plate number MH01PA598 drove up close to her car, and started harassing her with questions, asking her if she is on Facebook and if he could send her a friend request. When she ignored him, he persisted, saying he wanted to speak to her.
Infuriated by the unwelcome advances, Kapadia immediately photographed the man, hoping to deter him. She shouted across to him that she would lodge a complaint against him. Undaunted by the threat, the man continued with his antics.
Speaking to MiD DAY about the incident, Kapadia said, “He later came too close to my car and scratched it, leaving it damaged to an extent, without even bothering about the fact that there was a toddler in the car who got petrified watching what was happening. Shocked by what he just did, I stopped my car, and he too stopped his vehicle extremely close to mine, thus blocking my path. He even tried opening my car door, which luckily I had shut. Later, he went on to abuse and yell unnecessarily. A few minutes later I frantically started making calls, which he noticed, and that’s when he decided to escape in his vehicle.”
Unnerved by the encounter, Kapadia approached the Shahu Nagar police station last evening and lodged a complaint. She said, “It was a slum area around and the man was trying to take advantage, because he saw two women in a car. Thanks to the support and encouragement of a few friends, I decided to file a police complaint.” An FIR was registered against an unidentified driver at Shahu Nagar police station. Kapadia also described the ordeal in a Facebook update, posting photographs of the man as well.u00a0