Dad sexually abused me when I was 8; it went on for 7 years till I revolted: Kushboo

Trigger Warning: This story mentions sexual and physical abuse which may be disturbing to readers
Actor-turned-politician Kushboo Sundar, who was recently appointed as a member of the National Commission for Women, revealed at a panel discussion recently that she was physically and sexually abused by her father as an eight-year-old.

She said in the now-viral interview: “I think when a child is abused, it scars the child for life, and it’s not about a girl or a boy. My mother has been through the most abusive marriage. A man who probably thought it was his birthright to beat up his wife, beat up his children, sexually abuse his only daughter. When my abuse started, I was just eight years old, and I had the courage to speak against him when I was 15.”

Though Kushboo remained tight-lipped about the incident, worrying that her mother would disbelieve her, other family members were also abused.

“One fear that stayed with me was my mom may not believe me because I have seen her in that environment where there was a ‘kuch bhi hojaye mera pati devata hai’ mindset. But at 15, I thought that it was enough, and started revolting against him,” she said.

Recalling how her father abandoned the family and her, leaving everyone uncertain and anxious, she added, “I was not even 16, and he left us with whatever we had and we didn’t know where the next meal would come from.”

Kushboo had spoken about the abuse earlier as well, but the recent interview has gone viral.