‘TAINTED MY MEMORY, BUT I STILL LOVE INDIA’

South Korean content creator Hyojeong Park, who was harassed in Mumbai, on how she handled the situation

Hyojeong Park, content creator, was live streaming from the streets of Mumbai, with over 1,000 viewers, when she was harassed and molested by two men on Tuesday night. In the now-viral video, Park is first approached by one of the two accused, who can be heard asking her age and seen pulling her by her hand. Later, he’s seen dragging her towards his bike, where another man is sitting. The accused is then heard asking her to sit on his bike so he can “take her around”, even as she’s heard protesting. Recalling the incident, Park tells us, “While it has tainted my memory, I still love India and will return.” She adds, “My brain was like, ‘This could turn into a serious situation’. So, I tried my best to not trigger him and leave the conversation. I started walking towards my hotel. But, he started following me. His friend asked for my number and I could only think of giving him a fake number. Luckily, one of the viewers who was watching the live stream was nearby and he told him to leave in Hindi.” The South Korean national adds that she ran back to her hotel after making sure that the perpetrators did not follow her.

Despite the trauma, the 24year-old holds India in high regard. “It is sad that because of this 10-minute video, my viewers might think India is not a safe country for women to travel, but that’s not really the case. If you see my other content, I got to eat a lot of free panipuri and attend an Indian wedding too! I want people to know that India is still a beautiful country to visit and they should definitely come here,” she says.

After the video went viral, Khar police registered a case under section 354 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and arrested the accused, Mobeen Chand Mohammad Shaikh (19) and Mohammad Naqeeb Sadrealam Ansari (20).

Hyojeong Park says a viewer came to her rescue