Shweta Basu recalls facing ‘very bad’ bullying on a Telugu film set: ‘Meanwhile the hero would mess up every scene’

Actor Shweta Basu Prasad spoke in a recent interview about how she was bullied on the set of a Telugu film for this reason. Here's what she said.

Actor Shweta Basu Prasad revealed recently that there was only one film set she faced bullying in, all her years as an actor. Talking to Bollywood Bubble, she stated that there was one Telugu film she worked on where she would constantly be bullied for her height because her co-actor was taller. (Also Read: Shweta Basu Prasad feels ‘mediocrity’ is celebrated in Indian showbiz: PR said my social media isn’t like that of actor)

Shweta Basu says it's the only film set where she has faced bullying to date.

Shweta Basu reveals getting bullied on Telugu film set

Shweta was asked if she was ever bullied for her looks. The actor admitted that she was ‘genetically blessed thanks to (her) parents’, but she did get bullied for something else she couldn’t control. She said, “There was this one Telugu film I was doing and that entire crew every day would remind me of my height. Because my hero was quite tall, I’m 5’2, and my actor was 5’11 or almost 6 feet tall.”

She then pointed out the irony in how the male lead wasn’t called out for not even speaking Telugu well, but she was for her height, “He would mess up every scene, give retakes, him being Telugu can’t speak the language. Even I couldn’t but I was managing. And I’m like, you’re telling me about something that I have no control over. It’s something that genetically aya hain (it’s genetic), you manage no. It’s the only set where I was really bullied, very bad.”

Shweta Basu’s career

While Shweta did not reveal the name of the Telugu film, she has worked in a couple of them throughout her career. She debuted in the language with the 2008 film Kotha Bangaru Lokam and went on to act in films like Ride, Kasko, Kalavar King, Priyudu and Genius. Her last Telugu film was the 2016 film Vijeta. She also worked in Hindi and Tamil.

Shweta’s JioHotstar Hindi series Oops Ab Kya will stream from February 20. In 2024 she starred in Tribhuvan Mishra: CA Topper and Zindaginama.