New allegations have surfaced against Yash Raj Films’ casting director, Shanoo Sharma, following accusations from actors Isha Talwar and Abhinav Shukla.
A social media user claiming to be part of the YRF team has come forward, stating that the studio is built on “shattered expectations and rude behaviour towards” many.
Isha, who previously accused Shanoo of making her do a “weird” task during an audition, responded to the claim.
Shanoo Sharma accused of bad behaviour
The new claim surfaced when Isha took to Instagram Stories to share a comment made by a social media user who claimed to have worked in the assistant direction team at YRF. The social media user refused to disclose identity while sharing the experience at YRF.
Isha posted a screenshot of the comment, saying she is lucky that she has reached a point when she can raise her voice. Her Story also surfaced on Reddit.
The comment read, “@talwarisha kudos to you for being brave. I unfortunately am not there yet because I have seen what she does to people, to actors and to her own assistants. I worked in assistant direction and haven’t grown much to be able to take this head on, but am very aware of the patterns here. She will break you by telling you why you are not good enough. I have seen a lot of bad people but she tops the chart. It makes me sad how a podcast is used to put on a very very different face, far from reality. Only if they knew how the casting department at yrf functions, they wouldn’t tie a single knot of hope to it.”
“This kingdom is made from the shattered expectations of many aspirants, rude behaviour, thinking of yourself as god, remember this kingdom will fall one day,” it added.
Responding to the same, Isha wrote, “Identity koi nahin Batana chahta apni toh aap soch sakte Hain kitna fear hoga (If no one wants to reveal their identity, you can imagine how much fear there must be).”
“I can totally understand.. mujhe bhi tha (It was the case for me too).. i am very lucky to come to a point In my life where i have enough work being offered only because i gave 6-7 auditions a day for 10 years daily,” she added.
In another story, Isha wrote, “More people continue to get blocked, comments deleted for telling their stories…”
Shanoo is known for spotting the actor in Ranveer Singh, Parineeti Chopra and has helped Alia Bhatt and Arjun Kapoor make their debuts. She is yet to react to Isha’s claim.
About Isha’s remark against Shanoo
Earlier this month. Isha, known for her roles in Mirzapur, Saas Bahu Aur Flamingo, and Article 15, took to the comment section on Instagram under a publication’s post to recall the incident where Shanoo asked her to perform a crying scene in the middle of a crowded restaurant.
“So when I started auditioning for roles with Shanoo… I was told to perform a scene at a restaurant called Mia cucina in Versova, Bombay … a CRYING scene in the middle of a busy working restaurant with customers dining next to my table … I was told I should have no inhibitions as an actor and hence I should be able to do a crying scene with Shanoo sitting in front of me and some of her assistants … it was such a confusing/weird ask,” Isha wrote in the comment.
The Mirzapur actor continued, “It shattered my confidence as a young girl in films … I couldn’t understand why a senior casting director needed to put a young girl through this … it’s only fair that an actor is given a good casting office space to be able to audition in … or if you want to do a real location then hire a spot, pay for it and audition!”
“Anyway just putting this story a decade later for all the new comers to tell you that feel no pressure … I do remember saying I can’t do it and of course I never got the role … but at least I dint give in to the weird ask and surely dint cry at a restaurant for a role,” she added. After Isha, Abhinav Shukla recalled his discouraging audition experience with Shanoo.