Shekhar Suman shared this image. (courtesy: shekhusuman)
Days after Priyanka Chopra shared that she was cornered in Bollywood, several celebrities have spoken up about the dark side of the film industry. In an interaction with American actor-filmmaker Dax Shepard on the podcast Armchair Expert, Priyanka shared that she shifted her focus to a career in Hollywood because she had “beef with people” in the Hindi film industry and was tired of the politics in Bollywood. After several colleagues and fans extended their support to the Quantico actress, veteran actor and host, Shekhar Suman too, has shared his experience. In a series of tweets, Shekhar Suman said that the "cabal" within Bollywood will “oppress, suppress and persecute you” and that some members of Bollywood have “ganged up” against him and his son, actor Adhyayan Suman.
In a tweet on Thursday, Shekhar Suman said: “Priyanka Chopra's sensational revelation has not come as a shocker. It is well known the way the cabal within the film industry functions. It will oppress, suppress and persecute you till you are finished. It happened with SSR,” referring to the late actor Sushant Singh Rajput.
This was followed by a second tweet, where he wrote, “It will happen to others too. That's the way the cookie crumbles in the industry. Take it or leave it. And Priyanka decided to leave. And thank God she did. For now, we have a true-blue global icon representing India in Hollywood. As they say, every cloud has a silver lining.”
In another tweet shared later on Thursday, Shekhar Suman added, “I know of at least 4 people in the industry who have ganged up to have me and Adhyayan removed from many projects. I know it for sure. These 'gangsters' have a lot of clout and they are more dangerous than a rattlesnake. But the truth is they can create hurdles but they cannot stop us.”
In response to Shekhar Suman's revelations, a user commented that it was sad such treatment was meted out to his son, Adhyayan Suman. To this Shekhar Suman said that the actor will soon be seen in the Netflix series Heeramandi, thanks to filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali. He wrote, “Luckily Sanjay Leela Bhansali saw potential in him and cast him in not one but two very important roles in his magnum opus Heeramandi.”
Explaining the circumstances around her move to Hollywood, Priyanka Chopra told Dax Shepard in the now viral podcast, “I was being pushed into a corner in the industry (Bollywood). I had people not casting me, I had beef with people, I am not good at playing that game so I kind of was tired of the politics and I said I needed a break."
It was around this time that Anjula Acharia of Desi Hits – who is now the star's manager – contacted Priyanka Chopra and asked if she would be interested in a music career in the US. Anjula had seen a demo video of the actress. “This music thing gave me an opportunity to go into another part of the world, not crave the movies I didn't want to get but I would require to schmooze certain clubs and cliques of people. It would require grovelling and I had worked a long time by then that I didn't feel like I wanted to do it. So, when this music thing came, I was like ‘f*** it, I am going to America',” Priyanka confessed.
Before Shekhar Suman, musician Armaan Mallik too agreed with Priyanka Chopra's version of the truth. Reacting to a news article covering Priyanka Chopra's statements, Amaal Mallik said on Twitter, "Well it's something that I face daily. When fans ask me why I don't do as many Bollywood films? Now you know. The truth about campism, bootlicking and powerplay within #Bollywood needs to come out more often...See what they tried to do to this amazing woman," referring to Priyanka.
Shekhar Suman is best known for his work in films such as Utsav, Manav Hatya, Sansar, and television shows including Dekh Bhai Dekh, Reporter, Kabhi Idhar Kabhi Udhar, and Movers n Shakers among others.
Adhyayan Suman has acted in films such as Haal-e-dil, Heartless and, Raaz – The Mystery Continues.