Marathi and Hindi actor Priya Bapat has spoken publicly about a deeply uncomfortable experience from the early years of her career. In a candid interview with Filmfare, she described how a male co-star repeatedly crossed professional boundaries on a film set, leaving her unsure of how to respond. The revelation has drawn wide attention and sparked a conversation about consent and safety on Indian film sets.
Early doubts from the script stage
The incident dates back to one of Priya’s first film projects, well before her breakthrough work in the web series City of Dreams. She revealed that she had reservations about a kissing scene in the script from the very beginning, during early reading sessions. Her concern, she clarified, was not about performing the scene but about whether it was actually justified by the story.
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In her own words: “This was kind of my first, first films. And there was only one kiss in the film. And I had concerns and doubts about it right from the script reading sessions. And I was continuously asking the director, why do you need it here? It’s not about whether I want to kiss or no. But it’s just about how do you justify it?”
Director pushes, Priya relents
The director was persistent about including the scene. Priya said she ultimately decided to push past her own hesitations and agreed to go through with it. She gave her consent for a single kiss during the entire film.
She explained her thinking at the time: “If it requires and if it is needed, then I’m open to do it. But it is not required. But he was very insistent. And I said, let me also see. I want to break the inhibitions that I have in my head. Let me just do it and finish it off.”
Boundaries crossed on set
What happened during the actual shoot went beyond what had been agreed. While filming a song sequence, the co-actor repeatedly improvised and kissed her multiple times without her consent. Priya said she did not speak up in the moment because she did not know how to handle the situation.
She said: “And then there were moments where the actor kept improvising in the song. And he kept kissing me. And me being, I don’t know why. I didn’t take a stand for myself at that point of time. Because I didn’t know how to deal with this.”
She noted that the situation left her confused and rattled, partly because she had never encountered anything like it before and lacked the tools to respond.
Harassment continued off set
The problem did not stop once the cameras were off. The actor continued reaching out to Priya at the hotel where the cast was staying. He repeatedly messaged her, asking her to join him for swimming, dinner, and breakfast. She refused every time.
In her words: “We were staying in the same hotel. But of course, different rooms. But then he kept messaging me and asking me to come. And let me teach you how to swim. Then come, let’s go out for dinner. Can I meet you for the breakfast? And I said, I don’t want any of this. This has never happened in my life before. And it shouldn’t happen ever again.”
Husband flew from Mumbai to stand by her
Priya was shooting in Bhopal at the time. She began calling her husband, actor Umesh Kamat, every night to tell him what she was going through. Without being asked, Kamat flew from Mumbai to Bhopal to be on set with her.
She recalled: “I used to call Umesh every night. This was the only set. And I didn’t ask him to come down. But he flew from Mumbai to Bhopal. He just came on the set. And he stayed with me for three days. Just so that the actor gets some understanding. And he kind of backs off. And he kind of understands the boundaries.”