Actress backs rape documentary 'India's Daughter' for Oscars

Controversial documentary 'India's Daughter' which was banned by Indian authorities has opened in the United States with Hollywood star Meryl Streep backing it for an Academy Award.

The documentary titled 'India's Daughter,' chronicles the 2012 gang rape of a 23-year-old, on a moving bus in India's capital, and the protests started by Indian students after the rape.

According to Oscar-winning actress Streep, who introduced the documentary at its U.S. theatrical release, she's on the campaign to get documentary and director, nominated for an Oscars.

"I'm on the campaign now to get her nominated for best documentary," said Streep.

"When I first saw the film, I couldn’t speak afterwards" Streep added.

The documentary was banned by the government in 2012, because, excerpts of the movie "appear to encourage and incite violence against women."

About film

The documentary is based on a gang rape incident that occurred on December 16, 2012 in South Delhi.

The victim, Jyoti Singh, watched the film Life of Pi with a male friend, Awindra Pratap Pandey, after which they boarded a privately run bus to return home.

She was assaulted and gang raped on the bus; her friend was also physically assaulted during the incident.

Both of them were subsequently thrown from the bus. She received emergency treatment including several surgeries in India and Singapore but died on 29 December 2012 due to the serious nature of the injuries she sustained in the assault.

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The four accused men who were caught for the crime, were found guilty and sentenced to death.

One of the convicted rapists serving life imprisonment, Mukesh Singh, was interviewed for the documentary.

He said in the interview "When being raped, she shouldn’t fight back. She should just be silent and allow the rape. Then they’d have dropped her off after ‘doing her’, and only hit the boy."

"A girl is far more responsible for rape than a boy. A decent girl won’t roam around at nine o’clock at night,' he added.

'Indian's Daughter' is directed by Leslee Udwin.