Ananya Nagalla hits back at allegations of casting couch in Telugu film industry: ‘I've never faced it’

Ananya Nagalla got defensive when a reporter claimed that every female actor in the Telugu film industry has faced casting couch.

Actor Ananya Nagalla recently got defensive when asked about the casting couch in the Telugu film industry. When a reporter asked her to speak about it at a press meet for her upcoming film Pottel, the actor called allegations of all female actors facing casting couch ‘bullsh*t’. (Also Read: Chinmayi Sripaada breaks silence after fans request her to tell this to friend Samantha Ruth Prabhu)

Ananya Nagalla denied instances of casting couch in the Telugu film industry.

Ananya Nagalla on casting couch

A reporter at the press conference claimed that whenever a female actor is ‘given a chance’ in the Telugu film industry, they’re asked for ‘commitment’ (euphemism for casting couch). The reporter also claimed to have been told by industry insiders that agreements (NDA) are signed for it and that actors’ remuneration also depends on whether they agree to it or not.

Ananya got defensive and said, “How are you so sure while asking this question? No, it’s not there.” When the reporter pressed the issue further, she added, “No, it’s 100% wrong, and I’ve never faced it. I can’t deny that it might happen in the industry, but we always tend to look at only the negative. To say no one gives opportunities without commitment is bullsh*t,” apologising for using a cuss word.

The reporter persisted, telling Ananya that they were basing their questions on what people from the film industry had told them. The actor replied, “Like how you're basing your opinion of the industry on what you've heard, I'm basing it on what I've experienced.”

The Hema Committee report

This comes at a time when the Malayalam film industry’s shortcomings were exposed in the Hema Committee report. From alleged sexual harassment to exploitation of workers, the report detailed alleged poor working conditions in Mollywood.

After the report was released, Samantha Ruth Prabhu and other Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) members urged the Telangana government to publish the findings of the report submitted to them years ago. Choreographer Jani Master was recently accused of rape by a colleague when she was a minor. His National Award has been revoked following these allegations.