Neena Gupta shares her casting couch experience
- IndiaGlitz, [Friday,June 18 2021]
The outward glitz and glamour of Bollywood is cover for countless malpractices and dark stories. Casting couch is one of them. Seasoned actress Neena Gupta recently revealed her experience with this dark side of the industry in her autobiography, 'Sach Kahun To'. She revealed that during her struggle phase, a southern filmmaker expected sexual favours from her for giving her a role in the film.
Neena shared, “One day, a friend told me to go visit a producer who was a big shot in the south… When I got to the hotel, I called the producer from a phone in the lobby. ‘Yes, yes, I’ve been expecting you,’ he said. ‘Come on upstairs.’”
Going on with her story, Neena said, So, what’s my role, sir?’ I asked him finally when he paused to catch his breath. ‘The heroine’s friend,’ he said. When he explained it to me, it seemed like a very small part. ‘Ok … I have to go now, sir’ I said, ‘My friends are waiting for me.’….’Go? Where? he asked. He seemed genuinely shocked. Aren’t you going to spend the night here?'”
In last few years, Neena Gupta has managed to revive her career and she's been getting amazing roles ever since. For her next, she's going to star alongside Amitabh Bachchan.