Twenty-six-year-old Marie, a German national, came to India in September this year to work with an environmental NGO based-out of Chennai. Her short stay here, however, has been marred by a rather unpleasant experience.
Last week, she took to Facebook to describe an incident she encountered in a local bar, Small World, in Chennai in November.
Marie said in her Facebook post that someone had spiked her drink at the bar, and had it not been for the group she had come with which dropped her to her apartment safely an unfortunate incident could have taken place.
While her post was widely shared, what Marie found surprising was the diverse reactions she received for telling her story.
Though many people supported her, there were also those who doubted her and her version of what happened in the bar. She was told that her drink was not spiked and that it was likely that she could not hold her liquor.
“In Germany, drinking is socially accepted. Besides, nobody can judge my reaction to alcohol better than I can,” she says.
Marie also alleges that the bar was uncooperative initially and that the manager did not think that there was even a “possibility of me being drugged”.
She points out to an earlier Facebook post made on the bar’s Facebook page that stated that “some misapprehension and false allegations (are) going around in social media” about the bar and asked people not to believe them.
The bar later posted another note on its Facebook page mentioning that it is “taking all steps to look into the concerns raised by her”.
Marie says she knows two other women, who are Indians, whose drinks were also spiked.
Asked whether this was the only untoward incident she has faced in the country, she says that while her “white skin” and “blonde hair” does attract regular stares, she has also been groped once. But she feels that all women, including her Indian female friends, face the same issues and that it is a problem of mindset and not colour.
Small World’s Response
The Quint spoke to Dennis Arasu, who runs Small World. Arasu said that Marie reached out to them three weeks after the incident and that she should have brought it to the management’s notice earlier.
The bar’s management wasn’t aware that anything untoward had transpired. According to Arasu, Marie walked in with two male friends and left with them. On their part, however, the bar has stepped up security to make sure that their customers are safe. The number of bouncers have been increased, and the screening process is more thorough. They have also decided to preserve CCTV footage from the bar for upto 8 weeks.
The bar has also officially responded on Marie’s Facebook page:
Small World stands in solidarity with Ms. Marie Sophie for the unfortunate turn of events. We are happy that we had a chance to chat with her and we have reviewed all safety and security measures in Small World to assuage all concerns. Additional security measures including upgrading internal CCTV systems which earlier could store footage up to a week only have now been upgraded. We are taking all steps to look into the concerns raised by her and We assure her as well as one and all, of our best efforts to address the concerns and safety of women, at all times. Small world welcomes Ms.Marie Sophie.Small World, Chennai
(with inputs from The News Minute)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)