Actor Rajeev Khandelwal has never shied away from speaking his mind about the darker realities of the entertainment industry. Over the years, the actor has been vocal about issues like the casting couch, exploitation, and the power dynamics that often shape careers in showbiz.
The actor had previously revealed that he himself had encountered the casting couch early in his career and chose not to give in to it, insisting that he preferred to follow his own path rather than compromise his principles. He had once shared that such situations are not uncommon and that people in positions of power sometimes attempt to exploit newcomers trying to make a place in the industry. Now, in an exclusive conversation with The Free Press Journal, the actor once again addressed the issue of exploitation in the film industry, sharing his candid and nuanced perspective on the subject.
Speaking about the ongoing conversations around exploitation in the industry, Rajeev said that despite years of discussion, he does not believe the problem has significantly reduced. “We are talking about specific exploitation, we’re talking about physical, sexual exploitation - it’s been spoken about for the last decade now. I do not think that I’ve seen the crime rate going down. On the contrary, I keep reading about some really inhumane incidents that have been happening. Maybe they are being reported more, could be, or maybe they were not getting reported as often as they do right now, nowadays. But I haven’t seen anything going down, I mean. I would have to ask women, or I would have to ask newcomers who come into this town that do they feel safer? Are they facing the same situations that probably we faced when we were a little more tight-knit fraternity where nobody would talk about certain things and people would believe that these are the norms of the industry. I wouldn’t know what I’m missing unless I go and speak to them. But when it comes to reading, when it comes to consuming news from different platform channels, newspapers, I don’t see the crime rate going down."
He also reflected on how vulnerability and personal circumstances may affect decisions people make in difficult professional situations. “I have a different way of looking at it sometimes. I understand you sometimes submit yourself while in your weak state, but you are also looking for an easy way out. And you submit yourself in an emotional or a weak situation of your life. You’re also looking for an easy way out, otherwise you would have fought like others, those who do it.”
Rajeev further emphasised that conversations around exploitation are complex and often involve multiple perspectives. “So then when you victimize yourself and you say that this is what happened with me. I’m not trying to belittle anyone, but each time you hear that 15 years back for this job, I was there and I was exploited for years. Why were you there for years? And probably you were looking for an easy way out. Now it didn’t pan out the way you were looking at it, and now you are calling it exploitation. Of course, somebody was definitely exploiting you in your vulnerable state, but you were also looking for an easy way."
