"he suddenly came and grabbed me from behind."
Malayalam actress Malavika Sreenath revealed that she was groped after an audition.
The incident is said to have happened sometime in 2020.
Malavika explained that she was molested despite her mother and sister accompanying her to the audition.
Without naming the perpetrator, Malavika said:
“Casting couch is very much part of the film industry. I can say that I am a victim. I have not spoken about this before.
“Now, I can talk about this as I have a space in the industry.
“Three years back, I was called to audition for a role in a Manju Warrier film. The audition was for the role of Manju Warrier’s daughter.
“It was only later that I got to know that those who auditioned me were not part of the film.
“I was excited about getting a chance to work with Manju Warrier.
“I had no contacts in the film field. I could not check if the offer was genuine.
“My mom, I and sister were taken to the audition in an Innova.”
Inside the audition room, Malavika was told to fix her hair. But while she did, the man groped her from behind.
She continued: “It was a room made out of glass.
“After the audition, he said my hair is a bit messy, and asked me to go to the dressing room and fix it.
“As I was doing that, he suddenly came and grabbed me from behind. He was a tall big man.”
Recalling that she started trembling, Malavika said:
“We often say – ‘Why didn’t you react at that moment?’ or ‘Why didn’t you push the person and run?’
“But at times, we are unable to react. We are paralysed with fear. I was very young.
“When he caught hold of me, I began shivering.
“I tried to push him away with my elbow.
“Then the person said, ‘Malavika, if you give in, people will see you next as Manju Warrier’s daughter’.”
After being told to let her mother and sister stay outside, Malavika said she was told to stand in front of him for 10 minutes.
Claiming that the molester had a camera that he was trying to film her with, Malavika Sreenath said:
“The person had a camera that he was using to shoot. I tried to knock down the camera from his hand.
“While he got distracted and tried to retrieve the camera, I ran out of the room crying.
“My mother and sister did not understand why I was crying. I ran out of the building and saw a bus on the road. I boarded the bus still in tears.
“I didn’t know where the bus was going. I cried a lot on the bus. I faced casting couch two-three times.”
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