Bhubaneswar: A Cuttack-based model is the latest in the list of struggling actors, who have brought allegations of the casting couch in Odisha film industry.
The model has accused Mumbai-based producer J D Rout of asking her for sexual favours for a role in a Netflix-sponsored series. He was arrested by the city police on Thursday on the basis of a complaint filed by her.
In an interview to a local media channel, she said the producer offered her Rs 10,000 per episode in the series that demanded her character to enact bold scenes. The series, she said, was based on a lesbian theme and the producer said that she would fit into the character effortlessly.
“The concept of bold scenes was different for me until I met him in his Bhubaneswar office. He demanded that I sit nude before him during the audition,” the actress claimed.
She also alleged that the producer repeatedly asked her to perform nude. “He preferred to hold the audition in a locked room in his office so as not to hurt the sentiment of others. I suppose his intention was to record the audition for pornography,” the model claimed.
However, it remained unclear if she gave into his demand.
“I am strongly opposed to doing such things. He suggested that I should shed all inhibitions and took the name of famous Hindi actresses who had no hesitations disrobing before the producers,” she further claimed.
The producer, as per reports, had been on the run ever since the model brought sexual harassment charges against him.
Earlier claims:
In 2016, actress Sonika Roy had claimed the existence of casting couch in the Odia film industry. She was joined by Leena Das, who also alleged to have been a victim of such syndrome.
Allegations of Ollywood comedian Papu Pom Pom being involved in casting couch also surfaced in 2016. A case was slapped against him in this connection.
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