“I’m shocked and shaken, but this is the time to stay strong, ” begins Sanjjanaa Galrani while talking to Silverscreen about the alleged leaked video of a nude scene from her latest Kannada film, Dandupalya 2. The actress claims she did not act in the scene at all.
Was she told about the scene while shooting? “I play a gangster in the film, and in a particular scene, I’m harassed by the police to admit to a murder. During narration, the director told me it was a bold scene, but never mentioned it was a nude scene. When shooting, I was wearing a skirt and a backless top. In fact, even in the middle of the shoot, I completely covered myself. The working still that I have released is proof.”
The film released last week, and the alleged scene was removed from the film as the Censor Board ordered it to be cut. But, it was leaked online. Sanjjanaa says, “The film had many cuts, and it was trimmed to just an hour’s duration. After the press meet, I asked one of the team members about the cut scene. I wanted to see it as I had put in a lot of effort. A team member showed me the video and I was shocked to see a totally new scene there. I didn’t even dub for it! Thank God, the Censor Board had ordered a cut. I could see that the scene had been altered digitally to make it look like I was nude, which I was not. Even then, it did not strike me that it would be leaked. I blindly trusted the team.”
Sanjjanaa states clearly, “I’m a victim in this whole episode. I have been exploited, and my trust broken. The damage has been done and people have watched this ‘tamasha’ all over the Net, and news channels have been playing it too. Though I am shattered, I have gathered the courage to talk about this.”
Sanjjanaa has filed a complaint with the Kannada film chamber. She says, ” I have filed a complaint with the cyber crime as well. They are investigating and, soon, I will get justice.”
She adds: “I’ve just a small request to other actresses. Be cautious. The director told me while shooting: ‘Just trust me, you will steal the show with this character, and this will be aesthetically shot.’ His mobile phone has been switched off since the controversy broke!”
Dandupalya 2, directed by Srinivasa Raju, released in Kannada on July 15
