#MeToo In Bollywood: Alok Nath Named & Shamed Again; Renuka Shahane Gives Her Side Of The Story!
Shahane is glad that she never had to shoot for any film with Babuji outdoors!
Alok Nath has been named and shamed by Vinita Nanda of sexual misconduct and even raped. Even actress Sandhy Mridgal added her side of the story of Nath's sexual misbehaviour. All of this and more is happening as more and more women are coming out to name celebs who acted like predators. #MeToo Movement and #TimesUp movement are gaining strength with every passing day.
Alok Nath is certainly in the eye of a seemingly raging storm. Actress Renuka Shahane who worked with Alok Nath in Hum Aapke Hain Kaun and played his daughter in the film has a strong opinion about the man. After giving her take on Tanushree Dutta and Nana Patekar controversy, Shahane now talks about what she had heard about Alok Nath and how he would misbehave with his colleagues after turning up drunk on the sets of his film. #MeToo Hits Sajid Khan! Former Assistant Director Reveals Bollywood Filmmaker Asked Her To Get Breast Job Done And Send Bikini Photos
“My God! I am so glad I wasn’t on any outdoor with him ever,” says Shahane. “My experience working with Alok Nath has been very good but I have heard that he has two faces. People say that he can’t really handle his drinks. When he is drunk, he becomes a totally different person. His Dr Jekyl and Mr Hyde personality is known to his colleagues. I heard many such incidents after I had finished working with him in Hum Aapke Hain Koun and tele-serial Imtihaan, in which he played my father,” said Shane in an interview.
Shahane also stressed that people should not perceive anybody as good just because they play holy or saintly characters on screen. “But yes, there are some people who are crass even on the sets and they may be great actors. Let’s put it very clearly. Just because you have played a saint, have been principled on screen, doesn’t mean you are principled in real life. You are just acting the part. We are taken in by that image. But I want the men also to speak up. Even the best intentioned men… Why can’t they come out and say, Yes, this happened’. The least one can do is listen to the other side," she added.
“In Imtihaan, our father-daughter bond was so strong and it was so wonderful working with him, but then I started hearing stories that he harasses women when he is drunk. It was so shocking for me because I couldn’t put these two faces together. Deepika Deshpande (film and television actress) had mentioned about this to me when we were doing 9 Malabar Hill together sometime in the late '90s. Couple of other young actresses, 17 or 18 year olds, had mentioned that ki party mein badi badtamazee karte hain (he misbehaves with them in parties) and one has to keep away from him. That he misbehaves does not come as a surprise to me now but the extent to which he went (referring to Nanda’s case) is really shocking. What Vinta has gone through is heart-rending. There are many others who must have been harassed but they are not coming out in the open,” said Shahane.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 12, 2018 02:00 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).