Latest news with #post-MeToo
Time of India
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Surveen Chawla on impact of #MeToo movement on casting couch in the industry: 'It is important to have the fear of...'
Surveen Chawla candidly discussed her past experiences with the casting couch in the entertainment industry, noting a positive shift post-MeToo with the rise of ethical casting practices and stricter laws. She credits casting agencies for prioritizing talent and skills, contributing to a safer, more inclusive environment on sets for everyone, emphasizing the importance of protocols and intimacy coordinators. In a bold and thoughtful conversation with ETimes, Surveen Chawla opened up about navigating the darker corners of the entertainment industry, including her past encounters with the casting couch . Reflecting on how the landscape has shifted post the MeToo movement, she shed light on the rise of ethical casting practices, the role of accountability, and the growing importance of safe, inclusive sets. She has been very candid and honest about facing the casting couch throughout her career. Reflecting on whether this issue still exists today, she admits that she hasn't encountered it recently and isn't sure what newcomers might be experiencing now. Surveen said, "I have always been very candid and honest regarding the casting couch. I don't know if it still exists or not because I haven't had an experience in the recent past. And I don't know what newcomers are going through at this point in time—but it was tough. It was very difficult. MeToo, I'm sure, has helped the cause because it's important—I think, in all fairness, it's important—to have the fear of casting based on the couch." Regarding how the industry has evolved, Surveen said'I think it's all been positive. So it seems from the outside; I don't know. I believe people are relying on casting agencies and getting more serious casting agencies in the business today. You're getting chosen, selected based on your talent, on your skills—no matter where you come from, no matter what your power position is in the industry. If you fit the bill, you fit the role, you get the part. ' She added, "And I think that process needed to be authentic. And it's looking positive. It's looking positive because, no matter what, there are times when stars or actors are still going for a test because the director wants to really see and decide based on what you're doing in the test—whether you fit the bill or not. So I think that would be the right way to approach casting. And I would like to credit—I'm not taking names—but I would like to credit casting agencies who've been doing such a phenomenal job at it. " Surveen believes these changes have contributed to the decline of the casting couch, though she remains cautious: 'I think somewhere that has played a huge role in casting couch being on the decline, if I may say so. I don't know—I don't think I'd be the right person to say that.' She also points out that these issues are being rightly addressed today. 'And I'm glad they are being addressed in the way that they are because laws are stricter—whether it's man or woman or whatever gender. And that's how it needs to be. There has to be some kind of protocol that needs to be followed—with the advent of intimacy coordinators as well.' Reflecting on the past, Surveen added, 'A lot of troubling things happened on sets—not in my experience, but I've heard a lot of times, you know, back then maybe. So I think the protection and the safe environment for people working on set—for women working on set, for men working on set—is of utmost importance today. So I'm glad that it's being acknowledged.' Check out our list of the latest Hindi , English , Tamil , Telugu , Malayalam , and Kannada movies . Don't miss our picks for the best Hindi movies , best Tamil movies, and best Telugu films .
Yahoo
17-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Maybe not everything bad in the world is caused by Gen Z. There, I said it
My children, nieces and nephews all belong to that godforsaken slice of national demographics known as Generation Z. They don't tend to get a good rep (silly, soppy snowflakes!) and now their reputation has sunk even further with the news that four in ten people aged 18-24 are considering giving up work altogether and living off benefits, due to mental health issues. Although, as any doctor or shrink could tell you, nothing's more likely to ramp up depression than lying in bed watching TikTok videos until your brain implodes. Work is part of the vital societal structure that gives human life meaning. Or, at least, it used to be in the pre-pandemic era when workplaces functioned as communities with expertise passed down and gossip exchanged over the water cooler. Now the very young who were most impacted by lockdowns – missing crucial parts of their education and social lives – find themselves in a hollowed-out era of virtual offices, AI replacing humans, WFH, not to mention reduced fraternisation because of post-MeToo anxiety and slashed budgets. Who lunches or holds Friday office drinks in a stalled economy? I observed an excellent example of this multi-factor phenomenon last year when a good friend's daughter started dating a 19-year-old man who was subsisting on benefits. He'd been diagnosed with autism as a child and we subsequently learnt that his mum had told him to be silent and awkward whenever anyone came to assess his needs, so she could ramp up his 'needs' and therefore her own financial support. His education had been patchy, but he had a natural facility with computers, due to long hours gaming. I noted his diagnosis never stopped him spending hours chatting to strangers in pubs and clubs. When I asked this boy about his working history he cited stints behind a bar (sacked for arguing with the manager) and a short spell stacking shelves in a supermarket, which had 'stressed me out'. Neither job offered him as much money as job seekers allowance combined with housing benefit. He wasn't what you'd call blissfully happy, but I could see that an unpromising set of circumstances had pointed him in that direction and now the motivational forces required to move beyond them weren't in his lexicon. My friend coaxed him onto a basic IT course which he aced, but the effort required to progress didn't outlast the end of the relationship. This may sound like a portrait of an unsympathetic character, but I felt intense compassion for him. This lad's life was so lacking in ambition or prospects and so thoroughly, dismally emblematic of our times. It's hardly as if benefit cheats invented the exploitation of mental health labels. Just look at the proportion of children in independent education who have been diagnosed with special educational needs: a whacking 42 per cent, compared to 26 per cent in state schools. Canny, well-heeled parents can pay for that ADHD or dyslexia diagnosis (try getting assessed on the NHS, god help you) and get extra time in exams and other allowances. And, before you denounce me as a cynical shrew, let me confess one of my boys has his own anxiety disorder and used to be a 'school refuser'. I've been through the wringer on this. Friends working across the board in education confirm that while there are many children who legitimately require additional support, there are plenty of others whose parents game the system for all it's worth. In the end, a child's diagnosis may be as much of a hindrance as a help once in the workplace, because no boss is going to allocate extra time and special allowances for urgent tasks: something I've always fiercely pointed out to my boys. But I fear a wave of children who are used to special dispensations are now hitting the workplace and finding themselves too sensitive for it. And we parents may have created that avalanche of snowflakes. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
17-03-2025
- General
- Telegraph
Maybe not everything bad in the world is caused by Gen Z. There, I said it
My children, nieces and nephews all belong to that godforsaken slice of national demographics known as Generation Z. They don't tend to get a good rep (silly, soppy snowflakes!) and now their reputation has sunk even further with the news that four in ten people aged 18-24 are considering giving up work altogether and living off benefits, due to mental health issues. Although, as any doctor or shrink could tell you, nothing's more likely to ramp up depression than lying in bed watching TikTok videos until your brain implodes. Work is part of the vital societal structure that gives human life meaning. Or, at least, it used to be in the pre-pandemic era when workplaces functioned as communities with expertise passed down and gossip exchanged over the water cooler. Now the very young who were most impacted by lockdowns – missing crucial parts of their education and social lives – find themselves in a hollowed-out era of virtual offices, AI replacing humans, WFH, not to mention reduced fraternisation because of post-MeToo anxiety and slashed budgets. Who lunches or holds Friday office drinks in a stalled economy? I observed an excellent example of this multi-factor phenomenon last year when a good friend's daughter started dating a 19-year-old man who was subsisting on benefits. He'd been diagnosed with autism as a child and we subsequently learnt that his mum had told him to be silent and awkward whenever anyone came to assess his needs, so she could ramp up his 'needs' and therefore her own financial support. His education had been patchy, but he had a natural facility with computers, due to long hours gaming. I noted his diagnosis never stopped him spending hours chatting to strangers in pubs and clubs. When I asked this boy about his working history he cited stints behind a bar (sacked for arguing with the manager) and a short spell stacking shelves in a supermarket, which had 'stressed me out'. Neither job offered him as much money as job seekers allowance combined with housing benefit. He wasn't what you'd call blissfully happy, but I could see that an unpromising set of circumstances had pointed him in that direction and now the motivational forces required to move beyond them weren't in his lexicon. My friend coaxed him onto a basic IT course which he aced, but the effort required to progress didn't outlast the end of the relationship. This may sound like a portrait of an unsympathetic character, but I felt intense compassion for him. This lad's life was so lacking in ambition or prospects and so thoroughly, dismally emblematic of our times. It's hardly as if benefit cheats invented the exploitation of mental health labels. Just look at the proportion of children in independent education who have been diagnosed with special educational needs: a whacking 42 per cent, compared to 26 per cent in state schools. Canny, well-heeled parents can pay for that ADHD or dyslexia diagnosis (try getting assessed on the NHS, god help you) and get extra time in exams and other allowances. And, before you denounce me as a cynical shrew, let me confess one of my boys has his own anxiety disorder and used to be a 'school refuser'. I've been through the wringer on this. Friends working across the board in education confirm that while there are many children who legitimately require additional support, there are plenty of others whose parents game the system for all it's worth. In the end, a child's diagnosis may be as much of a hindrance as a help once in the workplace, because no boss is going to allocate extra time and special allowances for urgent tasks: something I've always fiercely pointed out to my boys. But I fear a wave of children who are used to special dispensations are now hitting the workplace and finding themselves too sensitive for it. And we parents may have created that avalanche of snowflakes.
The Independent
09-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Cate Blanchett says Hollywood is still ‘nowhere near equal pay'
Cate Blanchett has said Hollywood is still 'nowhere near equal pay' despite the # MeToo movement. The actor, known for her Oscar-winning roles in Blue Jasmine and The Aviator, has reflected on how the industry has changed post-MeToo. Blanchett, who is currently starring on the west end in The Barbican's production of The Seagull, was one of many Hollywood stars who reported being sexually harassed by Harvey Weinstein when allegations emerged against the now-disgraced producer in 2017 as the #MeToo movement was taking hold. In a new interview with The Observer, the 53-year-old was asked 'what happened with #MeToo'. 'Well, the conversation had just begun and suddenly everything was being discredited and undermined, so we're still having to fight for those same basic conversations,' she said, agreeing with the interviewer that it can seem like the industry has gone 'backwards'. Speaking specifically about equal-pay discussions, which were a prominent part of the movement, Blanchett replied: 'We're nowhere near equal pay!' The actor said that despite the many conversations surrounding equal pay, it has not come to fruition in the industry. 'Talking about it noisily doesn't mean action has happened,' she said, adding: 'I mean, there's a greater concentration of wealth than perhaps there ever has been in human history. And we can see where that's got us.' Jennifer Lawrence, Amy Adams, Sienna Miller, Taraji P Henson, Natalie Portman, and Octavia Spencer are among the many actors to have advocated for equal pay at the time. Famously, Michelle Williams was paid only $1,000 to reshoot her key scenes in the film All The Money In The World, while her male co-star Mark Wahlberg was paid $1.5m. 'No one cared,' Williams said, in a 2019 speech delivered on Equal Pay Day at Capitol Hill. 'This came as no surprise to me, it simply reinforced my life-learned belief that equality is not an inalienable right and that women would always be working just as hard for less money while shouldering more responsibility at home.' Fans of Netflix's hit series The Crown were shocked to learn that Claire Foy – who played the Queen, and fronted the series – was being paid less than co-star Matt Smith. She later told The Telegraph: 'It definitely opened my eyes to a lot. And I certainly won't be naïve about those things.' Last month, Blanchett questioned the lasting effects of #MeToo movement. 'Everyone talks about the #MeToo movement as if it's well and truly over, and I think well, it didn't really ever take root, to be honest,' Blanchett said. Speaking to The Guardian, she added that it is the responsibility of those in 'public-facing industries' to continue the conversation. 'When you talk about equity and inclusion, that means the people who've had all the toys need to share. They've got used to that being normal. And so you have to be very vocal in order to rebalance it,' she said. When Blanchett was asked in a 2018 interview with Variety whether Weinstein ever sexually harassed her or behaved inappropriately towards her, she replied: 'With me, yes.' The actor explained: 'I think he really primarily preyed, like most predators, on the vulnerable. I mean I got a bad feeling from him.... He would often say to me, 'We're not friends'.'
