Casting couch is something which has been happening behind the scenes and it is not at all a new concept rather it is as old as our civilization. People started noticing it very recently. Several actresses have been a victim of harassment in the Film Industry as well.
The casting couch is a practice of asking for sexual favours from a job applicant in exchange for a job in the entertainment industry, especially acting roles. The casting couch originally referred to physical couches in the casting office. This practice is termed illegal in the United States.
Male casting directors, as well as, film producers use the casting couch in a bid to extract sex from ambitious actresses in Hollywood, Bollywood and other segments of the cinema industry.
Time and again actresses have spoken up against the casting couch and harassment. Previously, #MeToo movement hit the headlines which exposed some popular names from several professional fields across the country.
Lakshmi Manchu recalls casting couch experience
Manchu Lakshmi Prasanna is a popular Indian actress, producer, and TV presenter who primarily works in Telugu cinema. Moreover, she also worked in American television. She is the daughter of Tollywood’s veteran actor Mohan Babu, Manchu holds a bachelor’s degree in Theatre from Oklahoma City University.
Even she faced people asked her for physical favours. Besides that, she also faced body shaming. “Being a daughter of Mohan Babu, you may think that I had a smooth start in the film industry. But the fact is that I, too, faced people asking me sexual favors and body shaming,” she revealed.