EXCLUSIVE: Ileana D’Cruz: If you speak out about the casting couch, it will end your career

Ileana D’Cruz, who will soon be seen alongside Ajay Devgn in ‘Raid’, believes that speaking up about sexual harassment at the workplace could be harmful for young actors’ careers. She shares, “It might sound cowardly, but I do agree that if you speak out about the casting couch, it will end your career. Years ago, a junior artiste down South, who was being propositioned by a big producer, sought my advice on how to deal with it. I told her that it’s something that I couldn’t decide for her. It is her decision and that nobody could force it on her. Many people have done and it’s up to her whether she wants to go ahead and do it or not. As far as exploitation and harassment is concerned, I wouldn’t stand for it. The fact of the matter is that if an A-list star is accused of something like this, you will require a large number of people to come forward, including A-list actresses and actors, to make a difference. Actors in this country are worshiped. So it will take many voices for people to acknowledge that huge stars could have such an ugly side. I can’t watch Kevin Spacey’s show anymore, though I have loved it earlier because he has been accused of harassment. It disgusts me as a person.”