'Peepli Live' co-director accused of raping American woman

Mahmood Farooqui is most famous for being the co-director of the satirical Bollywood film Peepli Live. The Bollywood director was in the papers for all the wrong reasons, after he was accused by an American woman of raping her.

Farooqui was taken into custody after a 30 year old American national claimed that she was raped by the Indian director. According to what she disclosed, the incident happened at Mahmood Farooqui’s home in New Delhi. The American national was visiting India at the time.

Farooqui co-directed with his wife Anusha Rizwi, who on Sunday dismissed the complaint against her husband as “manipulated and false”.

“We are determined to fight this till the reality is presented before the people,” she said in a statement.

Peepli Live was produced by renowned actor and Bollywood star Aamir Khan. The film was a satirical take on the rural urban divide in India and focused on farmers’ suicide.

According to a statement by the Indian police, the rape incident had occurred in March of this year but was not reported and the woman had returned shortly to the US. The case was reported by the American national on Friday.

India has attracted unwanted attention globally after the infamous Delhi gang-rape of 2012. Tough laws have been enacted against sex offender but the crimes do not seem to stop in the country.