Actor Padmapriya recently opened up about the repercussions female actors face when they decide to react against bad experiences in their life and career. The actor, who was allegedly slapped by Tamil director Samy in 2009, said media claimed she had slapped the director and not vice-versa. She also said she lost many movies that were initially promised to her. As the issue is back in the spotlight, here's a closer look into what transpired between the actor and director.
A flashback
Padmapriya was chosen to play the character Alagamma', a tomboyish character who decides to reform her wayward husband with love in 'Mirugam' (Animal). However, the director slapped her on the sets of the film on the final day of the shoot. Padmapriya, who was taken aback, decided to file an official complaint with the film organisations in Tamil Nadu. Casting director Manoj Krishna who was her manager then, later claimed that director Samy and his friends frequently tortured Padmapriya on the sets of the film. She was slapped since she did not cooperate with them. According to him, Padmapriya had called him immediately after the slapping incident, following which he contacted the Federation of Film Workers, Tamil Film Producers Council and South India Artists Association. She then filed a complaint with the associations, which banned the director for over an year. In the complaint, she alleged the director had slapped her without provocation.
The director was then forced to apologise to Padmapriya following the incident. However, in one of his interviews with Times of India, Samy claimed that the he slapped Padmapriya because she did not emote well. He went on to say that 'slapping' was not a new thing in the industry and he did that because of the tense environment.