It had seemed ‘completely consensual’ says Aziz Ansari on sexual misconduct allegation

Indian-origin actor Aziz Ansari, accused of sexual misconduct by a woman he dated last year, has said that their sexual activity “by all indications was completely consensual”.

Ansari, 34, has won a Golden Globe this year (in the category Best Actor in a TV series, Musical or Comedy) and is famous as the creator and star of the comedy show, Master of None. The sexual misconduct allegations come just a week after his win.

In an interview published on the website Babe.net, a woman named “Grace” (not her real name), a 23-year-old photographer, recounted a date with him that she called “the worst night of my life”. The interview has explicit details of how the date went, and how — as Grace saw it — Ansari kept insisting on sex.

She sent a text to Ansari the next day, saying, “You ignored clear non-verbal cues; you kept going with advances.” Ansari had then responded, “I’m so sad to hear this. Clearly, I misread things in the moment and I’m truly sorry.”

Watching Ansari at the Golden Globes, wearing the #timesup pin (to indicate support for equality and protest against harassment), brought those memories back, said Grace in her interview.

“It took a really long time for me to validate this as sexual assault,” she said. “I was debating if this was an awkward sexual experience or sexual assault. And that’s why I confronted so many of my friends and listened to what they had to say, because I wanted validation that it was actually bad.”

Ansari has given an account of their meeting that matches the version recounted by Grace — until it comes to the part about sexual activity. In his mind, they both consented, while she felt that she had not.

In a statement given to People magazine, Ansari said that he had got a text from Grace and then responded to her privately, as he was “concerned” about her.

“It was true that everything did seem okay to me [on the date], so when I heard that it was not the case for her, I was surprised and concerned. I took her words to heart and responded privately after taking the time to process what she had said,” he said.

The star comedian added that he backed the movement that gave women a chance to speak up about the injustices done to them. “I continue to support the movement that is happening in our culture. It is necessary and long overdue,” he said.

It was true that everything did seem okay to me [on the date], so when I heard that it was not the case for her, I was surprised and concerned. I took her words to heart and responded privately AZIZ ANSARI COMEDIAN

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK Aziz Ansari, a #timesup campaign supporter, has been accused of making unwanted sexual moves on a date last year