Minissha Lamba recounts casting couch experiences: ‘I have pretended not to understand’

Actor Minissha Lamba, who made her Bollywood debut with Yahaan in 2005, has said that she has experienced the ‘casting couch’ in the industry. She said that while she has faced it a few times, she handled it by insisting on meeting only in offices and pretending not to catch on to the insinuation.

In an interview, Minissha Lamba said that there have been times when she has been asked to ‘meet for dinner’ to discuss a film, but she insisted on a professional meeting in the office. She also revealed that on one or two occasions, she has been ghosted for not giving in to the propositions.

Speaking to radio host Siddharth Kannan, Minissha said, “I think in any industry where there are men, a lot of men are going to try. This industry is not any different. I definitely have faced things like the person not confirming for the film and saying, ‘Why don’t you meet for dinner? Let’s talk.’ And I am like, ‘No, why don’t we meet in the office? I don’t know about dinner but I am definitely free, we can set up a time and meet in the office tomorrow, if you want to discuss further.’ I have handled it like that. It has not happened much to me to my face. But whenever it has happened, I have handled it in a way where I have pretended not to understand what you are saying.”

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On being asked if they ever stopped calling her for work when she insisted on keeping things strictly professional, Minissha said, “Yes, one or two times, it happened. And then those projects didn’t take off only.”

Minissha, who is known for films such as Yahaan, Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd and Bachna Ae Haseeno, will be seen next in Raaj Aashoo’s Kutub Minar. The film also stars actor Karanvir Bohra.