Rahul Arunoday Banerjee and other Bengali artists laud Darshana Banik for turning down Suman Das’ OTT project in support of friend Puja Kulay

Actress-model Puja Kulay’s sexual harassment allegations against Bengali television serial director Suman Das have created an uproar. The model, who has now carved a niche for herself in the fashion industry in Mumbai, accused Suman of rape and murder attempt. On Tuesday, when ETimes TV contacted Suman about the allegations, he said, “I am travelling right now. I can’t talk about anything”, prior to disconnecting the call.

The incident took place a few years back when Puja was trying her luck in Tollywood. On Tuesday, Puja, in a social media LIVE said, “I am shocked to see him directing a show once again. I have been raising my voice against the misconduct since the incident took place. He tried to rape and murder me. There are many others who have gone through a similar experience." The shocking allegations left her friends and industry peers in a rude shock.

While many women have reportedly came out and made similar allegations against Suman, many popular celebs have come forward in support of Puja, praising her courage to speak up. Actor Rahul Arunoday Banerjee, Sukanya Dutta and many have raised their voice against the issue and praised Darshana for her decision. According to industry sources, Darshana, who is making her presence felt in Telugu movie industry besides Bollywood, denied being a part of ‘Gobhir Joler Fish’, an OTT project directed by Suman. While she never openly spoke about the reason why she turned it down, sources suggest, Darshana, who is a friend of Puja, is aware of the alleged incident. That was the reason she quickly turned down the offer.

Rahul, raised his voice against the issue. On his social media page, he wrote: 'এ একজন দাগী আসামি....এখনো কাজ করে চলেছে'

Many have heaped praises on Darshana for her ‘courage’ to turn down the offer while some applauded her for standing in support of Puja. Notably, a leading Bengali artist replaced Darshana after she turned down the offer.

Puja broke her silence yet again on Tuesday after Suman’s new TV show ‘Sohag Jol’ premiered this week and reason behind Darshana’s decision came into light. Puja broke down during the Facebook LIVE and shared the incident once again. According to her, the incident took place when she met Suman a few years back for work. After the meeting, when she wanted to leave, Suman allegedly stopped her from leaving and forced himself on her. She somehow managed a quick escape and locked her inside the bathroom.