Dame Meera Syal has revealed she was sexually assaulted in her 20s, an ordeal that "completely changed my life". The 65-year-old shot to prominence after co-creating and starring in the hugely popular sketch comedy series Goodness Gracious Me, before going on to appear in its loosely connected follow-up, The Kumars At No 42.
Assault in the 1980s
The star has now spoken candidly about being attacked by an older man she believed she could trust, before he attempted to rape her. The assault, which took place in the 1980s, was never reported as Dame Meera could not bring herself to subject her parents to the ordeal of a criminal trial – and consequently suffered in silence.
Speaking to The Times, she said: "This is the first time I've spoken about this publicly. It completely changed my life and the direction of my career. I could have given up, but instead I sought out a group of south Asian writers.
Finding Healing Through Writing
"They encouraged me to write more, they found me a place to live, they healed me and awakened me politically." Some years on, she confided in a circle of friends and discovered that a number of them had experienced something remarkably similar.
Dame Meera disclosed that the assault inspired her to create the powerful female characters that became a hallmark of the celebrated BBC sketch programme and the comedy shows that transformed her life.
Reflecting on a Golden Age
Reflecting on the sitcom Goodness Gracious Me, which also featured her husband Sanjeev Bhaskar, she said: "It was a golden age of sketch comedy, alternative comedy and Cool Britannia.
"There was a real embracing of multicultural Britain. How times have changed." When asked about her dream role, she said: "A badass godmother, head of a clan or a crime syndicate.
"If you had met some of the badass aunties I have met you would know they could run that ship without blinking. And she would be called something you wouldn't expect, like Sweetie Auntie."
– Rape Crisis operates a round-the-clock rape and sexual abuse support helpline, available in England and Wales on 0808 500 2222, Scotland on 0808 801 0302 and Northern Ireland on 0800 024 6991.
