Princess Diana wanted to run away with bodyguard: new tapes

Mumbai, Jan 30: A day after a woman filed a complaint against Ganesh Acharya alleging that he had forced her to watch pornography, actor Tanushree Dutta said Bollywood should boycott the choreographer.

A 33-year-old woman, an assistant choreographer, has written to the National Commission for Women (NCW) alleging that Acharya used to make her watch porn videos whenever she visited his office in suburban Andheri.

She also alleged that Acharya and two women assaulted her during a function of the Indian Film and Television Choreographers Association (IFTCA) held in suburban Andheri on Sunday. A complaint has been filed in this regard with Amboli police.

"It's time Bollywood and the other Indian film industries boycott choreographer Ganesh Acharya completely. Hiding behind the male superstars who work with this despicable man, he has been abusing his power and position to harass, bully and take advantage of vulnerable young newcomers to the industry," Dutta said in a statement here.

Dutta had alleged that her co-star Nana Patekar harassed and misbehaved with her while shooting for a song for their 2008 film "Horn Ok Pleasss", and Acharya, who was the choreographer, introduced new steps which were "intimate".

Recalling the trauma she faced, Tanushree said even though Acharya was party to all the harassment she faced on the 'Horn ok Pleasss" set, he went on to spoil her name and reputation.

"Nobody had any regard for me and how much I had suffered psychologically and financially because of the turmoil I went though due to these people. I left the industry because I was so scared and hurt over the atrocious treatment meted out to me on 'Horn ok Pleasss' set.

"I had worked very sincerely to get to where I got in life and so went in shock for many years, over the whole episode on that set almost 12 years ago, that led to an attack on my car. They didn't just break my car, they broke my spirit that day," Dutta said, in reference to the attack on her car in 2008.

She expressed her displeasure over how "leading men" and "heroes" of Bollywood continued working with Acharya, whose most recent work includes "Simmba", "Zero", "Sanju" among others.

"Even after all the information of fraud, non payment of dues, sexual harassment of dancers, bullying and intimidation and even physical abuse of dancers is coming out about Ganesh Acharya in the media, if the actors, directors and producers still work with him, it would mean that they themselves are engaging in such acts also.

"It's a warning to the film industry to stay the hell away from Ganesh Acharya otherwise your own reputation will be joined to his character. I'm sure many more girls and boys will come out about his misbehaviour and shady business, opening floodgates in the future," she added.

Jan 2: A young filmmaker was allegedly assaulted by an acquaintance during an argument over CAA-NRC in neighbouring Salt Lake City, police said on Wednesday.

The police have arrested the accused following a complaint by the filmmaker.

According to a senior police officer, the argument over the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC) began following a social media post by the filmmaker.

The accused allegedly went to the house of the filmmaker on Monday night and picked up an argument, which led to a scuffle.

"During the scuffle, the accused attacked the filmmaker with a knife," the senior police officer said, adding that the accused has been booked under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code.

Washington, Jan 11: Fresh off his win at the Golden Globes, actor Joaquin Phoenix participated in a climate change protest and was arrested by the police.

The "Joker" star took part in the weekly protests against climate change, started by Hollywood veteran Jane Fonda.

According to Variety, the 45-year-old actor also addressed the crowd of close to 300 people.

In his short speech, he took aim at the meat and dairy industry for being the third leading cause of the climate crisis.

"Sometimes we wonder what can we do in this fight against climate change, and there is something that you can do today and tomorrow, by making a choice about what you consume," Phoenix said.

"There are things I can't avoid. I flew a plane here today, or last night rather, but one thing I can do is change my eating habits," he added.

Besides Phoenix, veteran Hollywood star Martin Sheen also turned up for the protest and got arrested by the police. Actors Maggie Gyllenhaal and Susan Sarandon were also present.

Capitol Police said it arrested 147 people who were charged with crowding, obstructing or incommoding. All the protestors were later released.

Fonda, who was on stage with Phoenix, called him "one of the greatest living actors today".

She has been protesting weekly as part of her "Fire Drill Fridays" initiative since announcing she was moving to Washington "to be closer to the epicenter of the fight for our climate." Her participation has ended in multiple arrests.

Earlier this month, Phoenix had talked about climate change at the Golden Globes ceremony, asking Hollywood to walk the talk on the issue.