New Delhi: Actor Jennifer Mistry Bansiwal, who played Mrs Roshan Sodi, in the TV show ‘Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah’ (TMKOC), revealed last week that she has quit the show and accused producer Asit Modi of alleged sexual harassment at the workplace. Asit Modi called all the allegations baseless and said he would take legal action against the actor. Apart from accusing Asit Modi, Jennifer also claimed that the show’s project head Sohail Ramani and executive producer Jatin Bajaj behaved rudely with her. In a new interview, Jennifer has said that her allegations are not for any monetary gains. She also said she just wants an ‘apology’ from the makers.
In a conversation with ANI, the actor said, “One most important thing- I am not doing this for money; I am doing this only for truth and victory. They have to accept that they have done wrong to me and will have to apologise with folded hands that ‘We are sorry’. Because this is the matter of my dignity and self-respect.”
She also clarified that she has accused producer Modi only of ‘verbal harassment’.
“People are saying that Asit Modi had physical relations with me, I want to say that there is nothing like that. He just said verbal things to me,” she told ANI.
Earlier in a conversation with Aaj Tak, Jennifer had shared details of producer Asit Modi’s alleged sexual advances.
“From the beginning, Asit ji used to say ‘you are looking very nice.’ He once asked me what do you drink to which I boldly said whiskey. After this, he repeatedly asked me to come and drink whiskey with him. Although it was jokingly, however, things changed in 2019 when our entire team went to Singapore. During the trip, Asit asked me to come and drink whiskey in his room. I was surprised to hear this from him. Then a day later he said, ‘you are looking very beautiful, I feel like holding and kissing you. Hearing this, I trembled in fear. I told two of my colleagues about this. One slammed Asit Modi while the other tried to protect me in front of him. Once Asit Modi said, ‘If you don’t have a room partner at night, come and drink whiskey in my room. When things did not seem to go his way, he started giving me less screen space,” Jennifer told Aajtak.
Asit Modi has denied all the allegations and said that the makers sacked the actress from the show , “This is just a fake and baseless allegation and it holds no truth. She is just trying to malign my image. This is my genuine reaction and I am not trying to make excuses or cover up. Everyone knows how I am in real life. We sacked her from the show and my team. My director and the team asked her to leave the show. We have all the proof and I am not talking just randomly. My production will soon send you all the proofs and documents,” he was quoted as saying by ETimes.
