Ashok Slams Dani Filth: ‘I Wish I Could See A Man When I Look At You, But I Don’t’

The bitter dispute within the Cradle of Filth camp has continued to unfold, with former guitarist Marek “Ashok” Šmerda releasing a new statement directly addressing frontman Dani Filth’s recent remarks.

Ashok, who exited the band alongside his wife and ex-keyboardist Zoë Marie Federoff, disputes Dani’s claim that allegations of exploitation and financial misconduct are “false and damaging.” In his response, Ashok stresses that the accusations are not unfounded, insisting that the truth will come out and reiterating his criticism of the band’s management.

Dani Filth had previously described his message as a “final statement” on the matter, apologizing for sharing personal details in frustration, but standing firm against accusations of theft and abuse. He also revealed that his mother is currently battling stage 4 cancer, condemning the way the situation has spilled over into his private family life. Dani stated that any disputes would be handled through proper legal channels, not public mudslinging, while reaffirming that the band would press forward with its tour commitments.

Ashok’s full statement:

To Dan after last post,

And I believe this will be end of public statements from my side and my wife’s as long as it is end from his side. I know this is grating everyone… me too, but private convos did not sort anything for months. Understand it was last resort to go public.

I am usually most silent person even when I am hurt, which is probably why it took 12 years to properly say all of this.

Here are my hands. The hands I used to serve you for 12 years. To write and play music for you. I gave you these hands.

Your mom is always great person to me and I wish her healing. Her heart is huge as far as I ever knew. However it feels low to me to use her right now as excuse when we all know she’s been sick since last year. Everyone has been there for you and supportive Dan. We all give so much love and support to her as soon as you tell us.

I lost my own mother to sudden medical tragedy and I never even said goodbye to her- there was no time. She never saw me on stage with Cradle. She haunts me every day. But her memory tells me to be better man and treat others better. I would never use her as excuse for hurting others.

But if you respect mothers, then why twist our tragedy of miscarriage into something that was not true of my wife- she never drink while pregnant. However her doctor told her the lack of sleep, irregular schedule, constant pressure of management threatening her job if she did anything they didn’t like… all of this more than likely contributed to her body rejecting pregnancy. She exhibits high signs of the stress she is under. It is true we cannot blame it all on you, but for you to assume she was drinking with the pregnancy was low, because we all know there is very little that is worse to accuse woman of than killing her own child.

I saw many times rest of the band would protest or argue with you and management, but only Zoe was singled out to be mocked and punished. Even now your “fans” call her crazy but I can guarantee every man in the band has said same things she is saying. I am saying it too. There was never same respect for my wife there was for opinions of the men.

You once had my respect and full loyalty. Respect you lost while ago and loyalty you threw away not long ago. Even when I stopped respecting you, when it was obvious you did not care about us, I stayed loyal. Until… you respond to heartfelt plea to give us better chance for living with that sordid contract, which every session member knows you sent with instructions to sign as soon as possible. No one has a shitty contract just lying around to be sent by mistake.

To not take ownership even now for the many ways in which you screw us all, it is not surprising but it is still sad Dan… cuz again, even after years of being treated disposable I wrote my heart and soul into albums for you… because I love music and I love the joy of the fans. It is sad that you could not take responsibility for these issues in private, and now they are public, so we all are caught in giant storm. This is on you for not allowing anything to be handled privately. Just ignore, ignore, ignore everything we tried to tell you for long time.

I wish I could see a man when I look at you, Dan, but I don’t. I see excuses.

In time all will come to light as I do not believe we will be last to say something- although it is now obvious why 40 other ex members never did say much. It has been hell for us to speak up. But I do not regret it.

Treat my brothers still in the band better, if there is any honor left in you. They are damn good people and will always have my love and support. That is entire goal we have.

Here is also Dani‘s previous statement in full:

“After a long day of reflection on the road, I want to make one final statement about recent events.

“First, I’ll acknowledge that in my last message I let fatigue and frustration steer me into sharing more personal detail than was probably necessary. For that, I apologise. The truth of my account remains, but out of respect for everyone involved, I will not be commenting further on personal matters in public.

“What I must address, however, are the claims of ‘theft’ and ‘exploitation’ made against me, the band, and our management. These allegations are false and damaging. We maintain clear records that show otherwise, and any dispute will be dealt with properly, not through trial by social media.

“I also want to speak of something more personal. As Zoe and Ashok are only too aware, my mother is currently battling stage 4 cancer — a fight that takes all her strength. She has seen the wave of online attacks aimed at me, and it has only added to her distress. Whatever else is said, I hope we can all agree that dragging families into this storm is a cruelty none of us should wish on another.

“To Zoe and Ashok: despite everything, I do wish you well. We shared great times together, and I’ll always be grateful for those memories. But I won’t let unfounded slander define this band or diminish the work we’ve put into it.

“The show must go on — and it’s not a Christmas pantomime. Our focus remains on delivering these shows with the passion our fans deserve, and on building a stronger, clearer foundation for all our musicians moving forward.”