India's #MeToo storm halts 'Housefull 4' production

Actor Akshay Kumar requested making of film be stopped following allegations against Sajid Khan, Nana Patekar

MUMBAI: Allegations against Bollywood bigshots have been rolling in ever since Aashiq Banaya Aapne star Tanushree Dutta spoke up against Horn Ok Please co-star Nana Patekar.

With the accusations having trickled down from Hollywood into Bollywood, the growing storm has halted production of a Indian blockbuster, with the film's lead calling for harassment claims against its director and his co-star to be "stringently" investigated.

Actor Akshay Kumar said he had requested that the making of Housefull 4 be stopped following allegations against director Sajid Khan and one of the film's actors, Nana Patekar.

PHOTO:REUTERS

Accusations that Patekar behaved inappropriately on a film set 10 years ago sparked India's #MeToo movement, which has since engulfed Bollywood figures, a government minister and several comedians and top journalists. Patekar denies the allegations.

"I've requested the producers (of Housefull 4)... to cancel the shoot until further investigation. This is something that requires stringent action," Kumar tweeted.

pic.twitter.com/deSRvNnkAA

— Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar) October 12, 2018

"I will not work with any proven offenders and all those who have been subjugated to harassment should be heard and given the justice they deserve," the 51-year-old actor added.

Khan, 46, tweeted his own statement shortly afterwards to announce that he was stepping down from the film "until the time I can allay the allegations and prove the truth".

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Three women, an actor, an assistant director and a journalist took to Twitter on Thursday to accuse Khan of sexual harassment.

The actress said Khan had insisted that she strip during an audition while the journalist alleged the director had flashed his private parts at her during an interview.

PHOTO: FILE

Kumar's statement came two days after Bollywood power couple Aamir Khan and his film-maker wife Kiran Rao announced that they were withdrawing from the film Mogul over a molestation case against director Subhash Kapoor, who denies the charges.

Aamir Khan steps away from film associated with alleged harasser

Kumar and Khan's interventions are being lauded for possibly signalling a watershed moment in Bollywood, where established male stars rarely speak out in support of victims.

Some Indian actresses have long said that the industry, which is dominated by a few powerful players, needs to create an environment where victims can come forward without fear of being ostracised.

PHOTO: REUTERS

Film-makers Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane announced at the weekend they were severing ties with Bollywood director Vikas Bahl over a sexual assault allegation.

Bahl denies that he sexually assaulted a female employee of Phantom Films, the production house behind Netflix original Sacred Games, in 2015 and has threatened to sue Kashyap and Motwane for defamation.

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