Indian painter Jatin Das accused of sexual misconduct

Indian artist Jatin Das has been accused of sexual misconduct by two women today.

Das has been awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third-highest civilian honour, and is the father of acclaimed filmmaker/actor Nandita Das.

Environmentalist Nisha Bora was the first to come forward, alleging that he grabbed her and forcibly kissed her on the lips at his studio where she was assisting him on a work project in 2004.

Bora said that she was 28 and married for a year at the time and felt that she kept herself from speaking up by thinking that she would "make trouble for them, that I had no business disrupting their social equilibrium, that I had somehow landed myself in this spot, and that it was my problem to deal with’. I felt guilty and ashamed."

She also talked about being later contacted by Nandita Das, who got her number from Jatin Das to request recommendations for a female assistant: "At that time, I recall that phone call felt like a knife being twisted in my gut, because I had so, so much admiration for her, and it had all become so incredibly filthy that moment," she wrote.

Jatin Das has also been accused of inappropriate behaviour by journalist Anushree Majumdar, who alleges that he harassed her while she was working as a project manager for a cultural festival. She said that he demanded that she work for him, "stood too close" and "asked strange questions" during one meeting, adding that she spent the festival opening "hiding from him" and that he "called many times the next day".

Jatin Das has not issued a response to the accusations.