Helen Fonseca recounts how Udaan Sapnon Ki makers, CINTAA didn't act upon her sexual misconduct allegations
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; October 25, 2018)

While some survivors have felt empowered with the ongoing #MeToo movement, television actor Helen Fonseca rues her 2015 allegations are yet to meet their conclusive end. The Udaan Sapnon Ki actor had accused co-star Sai Ballal of sexually harassing her and sending her objectionable videos and texts.

Tired of his advances, Fonseca says she turned to executive producer Gurudev Bhalla's wife for help, who then directed her to Bhalla. "Gurudev could have spoken to both of us, but he simply messaged, 'You are adults. If you want to pursue this, talk to the governing bodies.' After this, they [the makers] would give me a call time by evening. I would keep waiting, and then be told later in the night, 'Sorry, we are not shooting with you today.' This went on for four days. Then they started playing dirty with me and started working toward ousting me from the show. They gave my role to another actor. When I questioned it, I was insulted by Bharat Chouksey [creative head] and production head Abhishek Agarwal in front of the cast and crew."

Simultaneously, Fonseca reached out to Cine & TV Artistes' Association (CINTAA), which was then headed by Gajendra Chauhan. "I called up CINTAA from the shoot who told me to simply complete my portion. I had expected them to intervene," says Fonseca, who then walked out of the show. "After my exit, they continued with Sai for one-and-a-half years."

The actor had filed a police complaint against Ballal in July, 2015. "It was a non-bailable offence but he got bail that very day."

She has made several rounds of the court but to no avail. "The matter is only being dragged. All I want to know is when will I get justice. I had faith in CINTAA. But it's sad that no one even bothered to conduct a meeting. I wrote a letter to the Supreme Court [in August 2017]. I had faith in CINTAA, and my director and producer, I thought they would help me get justice. But it's sad that no one [from CINTAA] even bothered to call us for a meeting."

Bharati Dubey (MID-DAY; July 18, 2014)

Mahesh Bhatt’s unfinished film, Girvi, that starred Ajay Devgn and Pooja Bhatt will now be made into a television serial titled Udaan.

Bhatt says, “This film could not be finished due to some problems. One day, Gurudev Bhalla, one of my assistants on the film, came to me and asked if the story could be made into a serial. I agreed.’’

The show is about how an unborn girl child from a poor man’s family is pawned to a zamindar. “In the film, the unborn child grows up to be Ajay Devgn. But for the show, the gender has been changed — an unborn girl child is pawned instead. Rest of the premise remains the same.’’

Actress Sai Deodhar, who earlier played the lead in shows such as Saara Aakaash and Ek Ladki Anjaani Si, will headline the cast in this show. In the meantime, Bhatt is also collaborating with Rajan Shahi for a show for another channel. Written by Zama Habib, the story is not a saasbahu saga. It is said to be about an ambitious girl who wants to fulfill her dreams at any cost.
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Chaya Unnikrishnan (DNA; July 18, 2014)


The show, co-written by Robin Bhatt and Javed Siddiqui (who have penned films like Baazigar and Koi Mil Gaya), explores the issue of bonded labour, still being practised in some villages. Says Robin, “It was in 1992 that Mahesh got the concept of doing a film on bonded labour. He had read somewhere about a child being mortgaged when it was in the womb of his mother. Javed and I scripted it. We shot some five-six reels of the film, before it was abandoned by the producer due to financial difficulties. Since then, Mahesh and I have always felt bad about such a fantastic subject being wasted.”

Over a decade later, Gurudev Bhalla, who had once assisted Mahesh, approached Robin and asked if he could make it into a TV show. He asked Robin to script it as he is the original writer. With just one request. That he make it female-oriented. “In the film, a boy is mortgaged, but for the serial we changed it to a girl child. We developed the story and showed it to Mahesh, who liked it immensely,” says Robin. Gurudev then
approached the channel and immediately got a go-ahead.

Udaan will see Sai Deodhar-Anand making a comeback to TV after three years. She plays the mother and Rajiv Kumar her husband.