Ankita Lokhande Opens Up About Her Casting Couch Experience; 'He Was A Big Actor, I Got Those Vibes'

Just like every industry, even the entertainment world has its own share of concerns and casting couch is one of the them. In the past, many celebrities have opened up about this malpractice in various interviews.

Recently, in a tete-a-tete with Bollywood Bubble, Ankita Lokhande confessed having faced casting couch when she was just 19-20. The Pavitra Rishta actress revealed that she was propositioned for the first time when she was called in to audition for a South film.

Recalling the incident, Ankita shared with the news portal, "I feel I am a very strong personality. I don't let anybody look at me also like that. I'm like 'Don't you dare to do that.' Yes, I have faced it once, no, I think I have faced it twice. Bohot pehle jab me choti thi, mujhe South film k liye bulaya gaya tha. He called me into his room and said, 'Ankita we want to ask you something.' I was like, 'Yes.' He then said, 'Aapko compromise karna padega.' I was so smart, I was alone in that room and was 19 or 20 years old, asked him, 'Which type of compromise does your producer want? Do I have to go to parties or dinners?"

Ankita revealed that she was asked to 'sleep with the producer' when she tried to evade the situation. Speaking about how she handled the situation, the actress said, "And the moment he said it, maine uski band baja di thi. I told him, I think your producer wants a girl to sleep with, not a very talented girl to work with.' And I left from there. He then apologised and said he will try to take me to his film. But I said, 'If you try and take me in also, I'm not interested in your film."

Ankita found herself in a similar sticky situation once again after she gained popularity with her TV show Pavitra Rishta.

The actress told Bolllywood Bubble, "When I got back again into films, I felt it again, just shaking hands with that person. I don't want to take names, he was a big actor. I got those vibes, and I quickly got my hands away from him. I knew it, ab mera yaahan nahi hoga, because it is a give and take thing. I understood and I left from there because it was not for me."

Ankita Lokhande shot to fame as Archana in Ekta Kapoor's popular TV soap Pavitra Rishta which also starred late actor Sushant Singh Rajput. The actress made her Bollywood debut with Kangana Ranaut's Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi in 2019. Ankita was last seen in Tiger Shroff-Shraddha Kapoor's Baaghi 3.