Malayalam Actress Nisha Sarang Accuses Her Uppum Mulakum Director of Harassment; Removed From Her Show After Channel Refuses To Pay Heed
The actress has accused the Uppum Mulakum director R Unnikrishnan of sending her sexually suggestive messages and then misbehaving with her on the sets.
Just after Kerala film industry is under a lot of fire when AMMA (Association of Malayalam Movie Artists) decided to reinstate Dileep, now its television industry has found itself in a huge controversy regarding women's rights. Television actress Nisha Sarang has accused her serial's director of harassment at work. Nisha, who has also been a part of many Malayalam movies, is known for her starring role in the popular sitcom, Uppum Mulakum. The show that is aired on Flowers channel has its ardent fans. Popular TV personality Sreekantan Nair is the head of the channel.
The actress has alleged that the Uppum Mulakum director R Unnikrishnan has been sending her sexually suggestive messages and then misbehaving with her on the sets. She revealed to TNN, "He revealed his true identity one week after the show started. Though I ignored his messages, his behaviour remained the same. I didn’t want to expose him in public as I feared I would be thrown out of the show which is very popular in Malayalam television."
So what made her come out in the open and accuse the director and the channel of unethical tactics? Nisha continued, "Recently I had to attend an award function in the US and had notified the director about the same. When I returned, I was told that I was no longer part of the show. I complained to the channel authorities, but they did not pay heed to it. The channel had warned this director earlier when I complained about his misbehaviour but now the channel is turning a blind eye towards me and the problems."
The director has told TNN that she has not been removed from the cast, while denying the allegations. However, in an interview to Reporter TV, Nisha had said, "The leave approval from managing director of the channel is on my mail. Everyone on the sets is witness to him (Unnikrishnan) giving me the nod to take off from work. Now, if I return to the sets, he will continue to harass me, even more brutal than before."
For her performance in the show, Nisha had won a Kerala State Television Award (Special Jury), Adoor Bhasi Memorial award and Mangalam TV award last year.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 08, 2018 03:40 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).