Padma Lakshmi shares story of being sexually assaulted at 16 — and keeping it a secret

Padma Lakshmi can relate to Christine Blasey Ford’s story. Ahead of the professor appearing with Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday — during which her claims of sexual assault against him will be discussed — the Top Chef judge, author, and activist penned an op-ed for the New York Times about being raped when she was 16 and not telling anyone. “I understand why a woman would wait years to disclose a sexual assault,” she wrote.