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India Today
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- India Today
Saiyami Kher recalls facing casting couch at 19: Was asked to make compromises
Actor Saiyami Kher, who made her Bollywood debut with Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra's 'Mirzya', recently made a revelation about her struggling days. Saiyami said that she was asked to compromise for a role in a Telugu in an interview with Bollywood Bubble, recalled the interaction with a female casting agent and said, "I have been very fortunate with regards to all the offers I have received. In the film industry, there was this one agent who called me for a Telugu film when I was 19 or 20 years old. She said, 'You know, you will have to make compromises.' I was trying to test her, because it was a woman saying it to another woman. I felt that deeply."advertisementShe further added, "So I said, 'Ma'am, I'm not understanding what you are saying.' I kept repeating that. And then finally she said, 'See, you have to understand.' So I said, 'I'm sorry that you feel I'm someone who needs to go down this route. There are certain limits I have never crossed in my life.' So yes, I have experienced it once, but it was just that one time when a woman actually asked me this." Saiyami was paired opposite Anil Kapoor's son, Harshvardhan Kapoor in 'Mirzya.' She later featured in movies such as 'Choked,' 'Unpaused,' and Telugu films like Nagarjuna's 'Wild Dog' and 'Highway.' She was also praised for her roles in R Balki's 'Ghoomer,' co-starring Abhishek Bachchan and Tahira Kashyap's 'Sharmajee Ki Beti.'Saiyami was last seen in Sunny Deol-starrer action-drama 'Jaat' where she played Sub-Inspector Vijaya Lakshmi. The Gopichand Malineni directorial also featured Randeep Hooda, Regina Cassandra, Vineet Kumar Singh and others in crucial is the granddaughter of late actor Usha Kiran and niece of actor Tanvi Watch
Hindustan Times
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Saiyami Kher recalls female casting agent asking her to ‘compromise' for role in Telugu film at 19
Several Bollywood actors have spoken out about facing the casting couch in the film industry. In a recent interview with Bollywood Bubble, actor Saiyami Kher, best known for her performances in Ghoomer and Choked, opened up about a casting director once asking her to 'compromise' for a role in a Telugu film. (Also Read: Saiyami Kher: I have worked with biggest directors trying to do something different, I don't want to run behind success) Saiyami recalled experiencing the casting couch when she was just 19 years old and said, 'I have been very fortunate with regards to all the offers I have received. In the film industry, there was this one agent who called me for a Telugu film when I was 19 or 20 years old. She said, 'You know, you will have to make compromises.' I was trying to test her, because it was a woman saying it to another woman. I felt that deeply.' She added, 'So I said, 'Ma'am, I'm not understanding what you are saying.' I kept repeating that. And then finally she said, 'See, you have to understand.' So I said, 'I'm sorry that you feel I'm someone who needs to go down this route. There are certain limits I have never crossed in my life.' So yes, I have experienced it once, but it was just that one time when a woman actually asked me this.' Saiyami made her Bollywood debut in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's directorial Mirzya. The film also marked the debut of Anil Kapoor's son, Harshvardhan Kapoor. However, it opened to mixed reviews and was a commercial failure at the box office. Over the years, Saiyami has appeared in films such as Anurag Kashyap's Choked, Unpaused, and Telugu projects like Nagarjuna's Wild Dog and Highway. She recently earned praise for her performance in R Balki's sports drama Ghoomer, which also starred Abhishek Bachchan in the lead role. She was last seen in a supporting role in Sunny Deol and Randeep Hooda's Jaat. Directed by Gopichand Malineni, the film earned ₹118.36 crore worldwide at the box office.
