Karishma Tanna, Surveen Chawla: TV actors on casting couch

TV actors have not shied away from talking about their dreadful experiences in the industry during the initial days of their career. Karishma Tanna is the latest one to get candid about how she got hints of casting couch from various people but she never fell for it. Similarly, actors like Tisca Chora, who was seen in Anil Kapoor starerr '24', Surveen Chawla, who played a pivotal role on the show Kasautii Zindagii Kay and popular Television VJ Ayushmann Khurrana have also been vocal about their experiences. Here is what they had to say.

Karishma Tanna: I have not faced the proper casting couch like 'come sleep with me kind of thing'. If people have hinted also I have not given that hint back. May be things would have been different, if I would have. But I never believed in that, if I have the talent and face then the director will take me in the film. Forget about the director even if you are speaking to someone, people flirt and give hints and it's up to you how you want to take it forward. I never encouraged that kind of things probably that's why I am still here.

Surveen Chawla: I feel very great that I have not encountered this (casting couch) here (Bollywood). I have faced this (casting couch) down south and of course, I refused to give into that...Honestly I can only comment on it If I had encountered it in Bollywood. I don't know if I should call it sheer luck.

Ayushmann Khurrana: I have been through that initially when I was part of the industry. I was a TV anchor, so a casting director directly told me that I would have to do it. So, I told him that if I was not straight, I might have given it a thought, but I can't do it. So yeah, the casting couch exists, but eventually, it's your talent or potential as an actor or performer which would last. You don't need to give in to such stuff.

Tisca Chopra: Tisca had shared her experience of casting couch in a 9-minute-long story-telling session. Her style of narration is bound to leave you in splits, wherein she refers to the casting-couch director as ‘RP’ which stands for Reptile.