Actress Manvi Gagroo Reveals Casting Couch Experiences in Bollywood

Mumbai. Actress Manvi Gagroo, who has acted in popular Bollywood films like 'P.K.', 'Kill Dil' and 'Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan', has made a sensational revelation about the casting couch. She said that in the early days of her career, she used to receive temptations and offers to compromise physically in order to get work.

Speaking recently on the podcast 'Two Girls with Two Cups', Manvi discussed a message sent by a coordinator when she was new to the industry. According to her, the person had written in the message, 'Budget 1 lakh and compromise along with it'. Initially, she thought it was a business deal related to adjusting the budget or GST (tax). She curiously asked in the message, 'What does compromise mean?', but only later did she understand how easily that person could write such an objectionable thing. After this incident, she went to a casting director she was working with and showed him the message, asking about its real meaning. The casting director advised her to block that person immediately. Sharing this old incident, Manvi said, 'I initially thought compromise was something related to budget or GST. Such incidents always happen with artists who do not have a family background in the film industry (non-nepo kids).' This is not the first incident of casting couch or demand for physical relations in exchange for work in Bollywood. Many famous actresses, before and after Manvi, have faced such abuse and bitter experiences. Famous actress Radhika Apte also revealed what conditions were placed before her in exchange for a role in a film. She was asked if she was ready to sleep with the director or the concerned person if she wanted a role in the film. According to Radhika, many people in the film industry go through such painful experiences but cannot speak openly due to fear. Similarly, actress Surveen Chawla shared her terrible experience in an interview given in 2025. She said that during a meeting, a director suddenly tried to kiss her forcefully. Surveen said that this incident happened after her marriage and it caused her a lot of mental stress and discomfort. Actress Mallika Sherawat, known for her bold acting, has also raised her voice about this dark side of Bollywood many times. She has said that some people expect personal and physical relationships in exchange for giving work in films. According to her, if an actress refuses their such wrong demands, she is immediately removed from the concerned project or film. Similarly, Richa Chadha, known for her powerful acting, has also discussed the objectionable offers she received in her early career. Her experience is that new and struggling artists always face such bad situations. Another actress, Isha Koppikar, had also claimed that a big famous actor had advised her to develop a 'close friendship' with the producer to get work in films. Her statement had also caused a big stir in Bollywood at that time.