Time and again, actresses have cried foul accusing directors of sexual assault thus keeping talk about the 'casting couch' syndrome alive
Sayali Bhagat, Manisha Koirala, Mamta Kulkarni and Payal Rohatgi
Ram Gopal Varma once said matter-of-factly, “Casting exists, so does the couch.” With director Subhash Kapoor recently in the news for allegedly molesting actress Geetika Tyagi, HitList trains its sights on few similar instances where actresses accused industry folks of sexual misconduct…
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Sayali Bhagat
Shiney Ahuja shot to infamy not just for allegedly sexually assaulting his maid, but also for reportedly indulging in indecent behaviour with co-star Sayali Bhagat.
Shiney Ahuja and Sayali Bhagat
It seems that Shiney misbehaved with Sayali on the sets of their film, Ghost. Not surprisingly, her allegations created quite a stir and soon after, she retracted her statements.
Manisha Koirala
In the early ’90s, Manisha’s mother reportedly claimed that filmmaker Subhash Ghai had made sexual advances at the actress.
Manisha Koirala and Subhash Ghai
The actress didn’t go on record about what had transpired between the two. They apparently patched up later. However, it may be noted that she didn’t work for his banner post the allegations.
Payal Rohatgi
The model-turned-actress reportedly accused director Dibakar Banerjee, of indecent behaviour while she was auditioning for a role in Shanghai.
Dibakar Banerjee and Payal Rohatgi
Dibakar, of course, refuted the allegation while fellow filmmaker Anurag Kashyap rushed to his support.
Madhur Bhandarkar
Supreme Court acquitted the National Award-winning filmmaker in 2012 after criminal charges filed on the basis of actress Preeti Jain’s rape allegations were officially squashed.
Madhur Bhandarkar and Preeti Jain
According to Jain, the filmmaker had raped her 16 times on the pretext of casting her in his films.
Mamata Kulkarni
Known for her bold persona and outspokenness, this ’90s actress alleged that director Raj Kumar Santoshi misused his position and made advances at her. Soon after, her career took a beating as the industry chose to shun her completely.
Shakti Kapoor
In 2005, the actor — famous for playing negative roles — was caught in a sting operation. Here he was seen offering roles to a newbie in exchange for sexual favours.
Aman Varma
Like Kapoor, this actor too was caught on camera. He was seen extending a TV reporter ‘an opportunity in Bollywood’ in return for sexual relations. The televised incident was followed by a spate of accusations from both parties.
Raja Mukerji
This film producer, who happens to be actress Rani Mukerji’s brother, was arrested after TV actor Priya Mishra pressed molestation charges against him. According to Mishra, she had met Mukerji to narrate him a film script when Raja allegedly molested her.