Over the course of three months of investigation, BBC has heard several allegations against three famous Indian classical musicians Gundecha brothers. The allegations emerged after a former student of Dhrupad Sansthan, a prestigious music school founded by Ramakant Gundecha, alleged Ramakant of sexually assaulting and raping her.
In total, five women have accused the Gundecha brothers of sexual harassment and abuse within the Dhrupad Sansthan campus. Some among them alleged that when they opposed sexual advances, they lost interest in teaching them. The survivors also complained that if someone complained about the harassment, they used to humiliate her in front of the whole class.
The founder of the Dhrupad Sansthan, Ramakant Gundecha died in 2019. His two brothers, Umakant Gundecha and Akhilesh Gundecha are also accused of sexual harassment.
Ramakant and Umakant had received Padam Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian award for their contribution to music in 2012.
Monica whose name has been changed in the fear of reprisal, shared her story and alleged that she was raped by Ramakant Gundecha.
The prestigious school founded by Gundecha claimed that they have accreditation from UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage Committee. However, UNESCO told the BBC that it had no links to the school and said it will be sending a ‘cease and desist’ notice demanding the withdrawal of such claims.
The allegations include sharing flirtatious and sexually suggestive messages to exposing themselves during class to molestation and, even rape.
Monica alleged that she had started facing harassment in the first week in the school. She alleged that Ramakant drove her to dark park and molested her in the back seat of the car. “He started kissing me. I pushed him away but he kept trying,” she said. “He touched my body and tried to unclothe me. At that time, I realised I was not moving. I was like a stone. At one point he realised that I was not responding. So he asked me, should I drop you back at the school? But I couldn’t even reply,” she said.
She didn’t leave the school as she loved music. But three months later, he raped her. She stated, “He entered the room, pulled my pants off and forcefully had sex with me. And when he had finished he just left. I went to the door and bolted it. And for three days, I didn’t eat.”
Another student, Rachel who is now living in Seattle told BBC that the abuse started at the very first day of her school. She was also allegedly molested by Ramakant. She decided to speak up about the abuse after similar allegations came to light in a Facebook post shared by a group called ‘Dhrupad Family Europe’ in September 2020.
The Gundecha brother had denied all the allegations. The matter is only investigated by BBC. Many of the students cited the lack of faith in Indian Judiciary to deliver justice as the main reason to not to pursue a legal action.
