Amidst all the clamour regarding sexual harassment and about Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein being named many times regarding rape and assault of multiple actresses and models, actress Vidya Balan came out saying in an interview that she protected herself against 'sleazy predators' and the 'casting couch' in the industry. And when asked whether the 'culture of silence' regarding the casting couch matter exists in the Indian film industry too, Vidya stated, "I'm a living example of the fact that not everyone is a predator".
When the actress was asked about how she managed to protect herself from the casting couch she said, "I come from a privileged background, so I always gave the vibe that I don't need this, I'm only doing this as a passion, I'm very serious about this... But I won't react with people in a way that was personal. Almost err on the side of caution. Maybe it's also a middle-class thing. If you smelt a rat, you'd rather keep away. That was my way of protecting myself". However, Vidya did state that she had heard of people who had experienced that inappropriate situation and that they did choose to stay quiet about it since they didn't want to be known for that sort of controversy.
Vidya who has managed to portray really strong characters on the big screen concluded saying, "You get a vibe and I would walk away because I wanted to be safe. Having said that, whatever you want to do for the sake of your career or your life, no one should be judging you either way. You would be blamed previously, so people wouldn't talk about it because fingers would be pointed at you”.
