#MeToo: Sruthi Hariharan accuses actor Arjun Sarja of sexual harassment

South Indian actress Sruthi Hariharan has accused actor Arjun Sarja of sexual harassment during the shoot of a film in 2016

"During the rehearsal, we delivered our lines and Mr. Arjun hugs me. With no forewarning or permission, he runs his hands intimately up and down my back. He pulls me closer with my body taut against his and asks the director if we could use this idea of foreplay in the scene," said Shruti on a Facebook post.

The actress also revealed that the incident took place in front of 50 crew members of the film and that the incident left her in shock. 

''I am all for depicting realism in cinema, but this felt absolutely wrong. His (Arjun) intent seemed anything but professional. I hated that he did it and angry that I didn`t know what to say then," she added.

She further said, "During the course of production, every smutty innuendo he (Arjun) made created an unpalatable work environment for me. His salacious invitations to meet him after work appalled me." 


The film's director had also sensed the discomfort that she was facing on the sets. " The director sensed my discomfort too. I made sure I let the direction department know that I was not interested to be a part of rehearsals and will come directly for takes. I also shared the incident with my make up team right after," added the actress in her post. Sruthi recalled that she had discussed the incident with her makeup team.

"I choose to come out now because henceforth, I think Mr. Arjun Sarja needs to make sure he doesn`t cross the thin line between two actors and use his position of power to cause another person discomfort or hurt," she added.

Although the actress did not want to go back for the shot yet she had to complete the film she had signed.

However, actor Arjun dismissed any such claim.