Mumbai-based professional pole dancer and yoga and flexibility coach Joanna Michelle has allegedly accused Gunjan Sharma, a prominent yoga, flexibility, and callisthenics coach, of sexual assault through a video on her Instagram handle.
The video features an emotional Michelle requesting an "urgent and desperate plea for help." She claimed that she was sexually assaulted by Gunjan Sharma, whom she thought was a respectable coach, on May 11, 2023. She alleged that only later did she come to know that he had been sexually assaulting and molesting several women, including young girls, for the past 10 years who had been too traumatised to speak up until now.
Yoga Coach Accused Of Assault
"I have filed an FIR with the police, but Gunjan was arrested and released within less than a day despite the fact that he is a sexual predator," said Michelle in the video.
She added that while the legal battle might take two to four years, none of the survivors felt safe knowing that he was free and could harm them at any time.
"He assaulted me in my own home, and knowing that he is a predator, I cannot go to sleep knowing that this might happen to yet another woman," stated Michelle.
Between tears, she said that she believes in her heart that he is supposed to be behind bars during the duration of the trial. She pleaded with the Mumbai police to take action for the sake of all the women survivors involved in this case.
In a second video, Michelle narrates her traumatic experience of allegedly being assaulted by Gunjan Sharma. She said that on May 11, she agreed to train with Gunjan Sharma due to his morality as a coach, professionalism, and experience. She had expected that he would respect her in the same way. However, after training for 2.5 hours, she stated that Gunjan had refused to leave her home despite her repeatedly telling him.
"Whenever I heard such stories, I always thought I would fight back if this ever happened to me, but when I was attacked, I was paralysed," she said, wiping away tears. She claimed that the assault lasted for an hour and a half, and at one point, while she was frozen in fear and panic, he acted like nothing had happened. "At one point I thought I would get raped, and that was when I managed to get him out of my house," said Michelle. She added that she was in so much shock that she was responding politely to his texts until the next day.
Two days later, she confided in a friend, and that was when she discovered he had assaulted multiple other women. She stated that she had been crying for the past few weeks while hearing the stories of every woman.
In a third video, Michelle said that today she was in a position to use her platform to not just save and seek justice for herself but for other survivors and the women who may suffer after her. She claimed she couldn’t sleep knowing that he was out there looking for his next target. "That is my driving force to fight back, no matter how arduous the process is," she said.
She added that she wasn’t just fighting for herself but was giving a voice to those who had suffered before her and preventing the suffering of other women in the future.
She told the other women that it was safe to share their stories with her. Further, she promised to do her best to protect them and keep their identities anonymous throughout the fight.
She ended the video by thanking everyone who had done their best to give her strength, support, and protection so far. "This is going to be a long and gruelling fight, but together hopefully we can make a difference," concluded Michelle.
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Image Credits: Screengrab from Joanne Michelle via Instagram
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