Pakistani actor- singer Meesha Shafi ruffled feathers when she accused popular singer-turned actor Ali Zafar ( of Tere Bin Laden fame) of subjecting her to "sexual harassment of a physical nature".
The scandal has sparked a national conversation about sexual misconduct and encouraged others to come forward, with few in defense of Meesha Shafi and others in allying with Ali, who, on his part, has vehemently denied all her claims.
One such incident of alleged harassment, mentioned by Meesha was at a jam session, which took place at Ali's Studio, situated inside his Lahore residence, on December 21 2017, where the 36-year-old singer claimed that she was visibly uncomfortable with Ali's proximity.
However, these claims have been refuted by two women who were present at the jam session. Aqsa Ali, a Pakistani model-singer, took to social media to write that she was shocked by Meesha's allegations.
Speaking exclusively to India Today TV, Aqsa, an eye-witness at the jam session said, "Let me first begin by saying I'm a feminist, I was present when the so-called incident happened, with 10 other musicians. We were at Ali's residence, and Ali has a separate room for his music, a different studio kind of a place, which also has a separate entrance."
"Meesha came that evening to jam with us, along with her manager. We were already jamming, by the time she walked in. She came on her own accord, no one forced her to come. We jammed for about one- and- a- half hours and left, so where does the question of harassment apply? There were so many of us in the room and everyone was so professional."
Defending Ali, Aqsa added, "Meesha has made up the entire story. We were all present, I don't know why she is making it all up. I don't know if she had a personal vendetta, she is answerable about that, but the allegations that she is putting on Ali are absolutely wrong, I can assure you in front of us, nothing happened."
Aqsa who has known Ali on a professional level, and was a part of the jam session on the evening of December 21, noted there was nothing odd about Meesha's behavior.
"There was nothing wrong with her behavior at the jam session. It was extremely professional and she just came for an hour and left, we didn't think there was anything wrong. I saw everything with my own eyes and why should I keep quiet about it. This is bad that people are using women empowerment to their personal gain. Keeping quiet is also not right for us,' she concluded.
ALSO SEE| Meesha Shafi vs Ali Zafar: Who said what on sexual harassment allegations
ALSO SEE: 'Meesha Shafi was hired independently, she performed with Ali Zafar of her own free will'
ALSO WATCH: Meesha Shafi accuses Ali Zafar of sexual harassment, Ranbir Kapoor-Deepika Padukone walk the ramp