The Hathras case of 2020 shocked the country and spread outrage across India. Six years later, the ZEE5 documentary ‘Hathras 16 Days’ revisits the crime, the investigation and the continuing trauma faced by the victim’s family. director patrick graham And the documentary featuring journalist Tanushree Pandey, who covered the case extensively on the ground, explores how caste, patriarchy and fear are shaping the lives of those left behind.
In conversation with Hindustan Times, Patrick and Tanushree talk about revisiting Hathras, the disturbing mindset during filming, the trolling Tanushree faced and why even after six years the victim’s family still feels trapped in the trauma.
The 2020 Hathras gang rape and murder case was one of the most shocking crimes recorded in India in 2020. A 19-year-old Dalit woman from Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras district was allegedly attacked by four upper caste men in September 2020. He suffered serious spinal injuries and later died in a Delhi hospital after battling for his life for two weeks.
The investigation was transferred to CBI. In 2023, a special court in Uttar Pradesh acquitted three accused due to lack of evidence, while one accused, Sandeep, was convicted of culpable homicide not amounting to murder and offenses under the SC/ST Act. However, all four accused were acquitted of rape charges.
Here are excerpts from the interview
Question: Many crimes affect the country for a short time and then are forgotten. Why did you feel that Hathras was a case that needed to be revisited after six years?
Patrick Graham: “I remember the Hathras case during Covid, and the story stayed with me even then. So when Docube approached me to investigate the story in 2024, it immediately attracted me. These types of crimes are happening in the country even today. We can focus on one example for some time, but the issue still hasn’t gone away. It still needs attention in India.” Patrick revealed that when he joined the project, Tanushree was already involved in the research process.
Q: Six years later, when you reunited with the family, what changed the most, emotionally, financially or psychologically?
Tanushree Pandey:They are in worse condition now. Things have changed, but not for the better. Financially they are struggling. They got compensation from the UP government, but now we are in 2026 and inflation is increasing. We are talking about a very poor family. What impressed me most was that this trauma is now being passed down to the next generation. The victim’s niece, girls studying in classes 3 and 4, are not even getting proper admission in schools. When the family approached a government school, the principal asked them to sign a document stating that if anything happened to the girls, the family would be responsible as the accused’s children also studied there. A generation has already gone through trauma, but girls growing up in that family are inheriting the same trauma. They don’t even fully understand crimes like rape or sexual assault, yet they’re growing up under that shadow.”
She added, “It’s something that stayed with us. We went to the family. I kept visiting them, but when we reached the village, we thought they might have moved on a bit in six years, but still, they have a lot of problems. The crime that happened six years ago hasn’t left them. The girls in their family don’t even know the gravity of crimes like sexual assault, rape and murder, but they are growing up with the same trauma. It’s extremely unfortunate, but that’s the reality.”
Question: Tanushree, you also faced intense trolling while covering this case. What was that period like for you personally?
Tanushree said, “I speak very openly and honestly and that’s why I once said that my career is over. I was not as concerned about myself as I was about my family. These are scary times. People are extremely aggressive and angry. There is no room for disagreement now. The moment you don’t agree with someone’s point of view, they feel justified in attacking you.”
She further added, “This was the first time I had to face such organized trolling and attacks from various IT cells and groups. I was scared. I wondered if I would be arrested or sent to jail. I kept thinking how will I make money if this ends? I always wanted to be a journalist because I believed journalism meant exposing the truth and questioning power. But when I did exactly that, I was punished for it, attacked.” It really shook me. And then I realized – if someone like me still has the support and visibility, I can’t imagine what women in rural India must have gone through in their last moments.”
Question: How difficult was it to listen to the testimony of the accused’s father and lawyer, especially when they denied rape and indicated consent?
In the documentary, the father and lawyer of the accused deny rape and say that whatever happened happened with the consent of the victim. Both Patrick and Tanushree admitted that the statements shocked them.
patrick graham: “It’s a reminder that there are a lot of people within this country who believe in something we’ve shot down. I don’t even know how small a minority that is, but honestly, when you hear certain ideas being bandied about such as there being no such thing as rape, girls asking for it, these are all ideas from medieval times, and they have no place in a functioning modern society.”
He continued, “And the thing is, nowadays, we hear conservative men talking about their views about women, but if we look at the end result of that culture, that’s what you find, which is hell on earth in my opinion. It’s kind of an ignorant approach and dismissive of women, and very patriarchal. It’s a society with a failed culture and things like that. So it was shocking but also within this country and many other countries around the world “It also tells about a particular sub-section of culture that believes the same thing.”
Tanushree Pandey: “When he said these things, Patrick and I looked at each other in disbelief. We really couldn’t believe what we were hearing in 2025. But it also says a lot about the culture of the great society we have. We’re very proud of this country, and that’s why we keep questioning society because we want it to evolve. We’re also very surprised by what they were saying, but we also know the progressive things we’re doing. Talking about, they are limited to social media only. Outside, if you go to the grassroots level, I am not even talking about villages, please go out to urban places also, no one is progressive.
She further added, “When it comes to women, people have all kinds of rules that don’t apply to men. They have all kinds of rules and restrictions that don’t apply to men at all. In fact, I was talking to someone about the case that is still sub-judice in the Asaram Bapu case. The lawyer called me and said that he is on bail and has been granted bail on medical grounds. But he is roaming very freely and the victim has been molested by someone. Have not seen. He is still locked in his house, still facing consequences for speaking out against such a powerful person. In our country, there are more restrictions on the victims than on the accused.
patrick graham: “I remember we went out for a break, and we were saying, ‘Is he really saying that? We better go in and take it in more. Women, especially Dalit women in those areas, are at the bottom of the social hierarchy. So this is completely unfair and unfair. It is also shameful for a modern progressive nation that once put itself forward in the world as a major influential power, to have such medieval problems in the country.'”
He added, “I think it’s a shame. Everyone should be like, ‘This can’t continue.’ Because we were in Hathras and apart from the smartphone, it felt as if you were going back in time. You are going to a place where women are not allowed to go on the streets. There were hardly any women on the streets, and if they were on the streets, their faces were covered. It’s like going back in time. Is this ever going to change? I don’t know.”
Tanushree He further recalls, “I remember we had finished shooting and these guys were having a party. They had booked a banquet hall and there wasn’t a single woman there. And Patrick asked, ‘Is this normal?’ I said, ‘That’s the point.’ Women are not allowed to party or drink alcohol. If a woman is seen drinking or smoking, people will assume that anything can happen to her; She is asking for it. Patrick told me not to interfere and to let people say whatever they wanted to say. We wanted to make this documentary so that all the men who are watching this documentary and actually have a problem with women’s safety in this country, their mindset starts from here.”
patrick Adding, “It seemed so boring. I mean, why would you go to a disco? It’s like a sausage party going on in the basement, and the other thing, the hotel or restaurant we were staying at, families would come over. The husbands would sit at one table, and the wives would sit at another table. And I said, ‘Wow, this is crazy.’ Personally, I find the company of only men really boring, but it seemed like these guys were happy just hanging out with their male friends. I think there are a lot of men out there who don’t believe that rape happens, which is absolutely crazy. They think it is an excuse that women make to protect their dignity and shame. I feel like many of the people we spoke to for this documentary felt the same way.
Question: Has the victim’s family seen the documentary yet? How did they react?
Tanushree Pandey: “Yes, they watched it and later called me. The mother had tears in her eyes. Watching the documentary meant reliving that shock. We all got emotional during the shooting. I cried too. As journalists, we try to remain detached, but this story affected everyone deeply. The family kept missing their daughter. They told how she used to help around the house and was a very good cook. She said that the documentary had helped her Has done justice to the story and his memory.”
“What was interesting to me was that I even got calls from people from dominant caste communities who acknowledged that such things happen and said that they would at least try to ensure that this does not happen again in their area. For me, if even one person thinks after watching the film, then perhaps the documentary has done its job,” he concluded.
