Ever since the arrest of the Chicago couple, Kishan Modugumudi and his wife Chandra Modugumudi for running a prostitution racket involving Tollywood actresses and Telugu NRIs in the US, more actresses have opened up about being approached by the couple.
Anasuya Bharadwaj said that she was also approached in 2016 by the NRI couple. The TV host-actress told DNA, “I haven’t visited the United States for a long time. I attended an event with music composer Devi Sri Prasad way back in 2014. In 2016, Sreeraj (Kishan Modugumudi) contacted me from his American number, asking me to attend a Telugu association event. I was uncomfortable with the way he spoke. He was talking about making a commitment. I refused to attend the event. Despite my refusal, he put my picture on the poster. I tweeted saying I have nothing to do with the event.”
As it was reported earlier, the couple has been running the racket as a business for a while now, coordinating between actresses and interested parties locally for paid sexual encounters, charging up to $3,000 from clients.
It was learnt that the actresses were called to the US under the pretext of events and functions while these activities were conducted on the sidelines.
In a another report, actress Sri Reddy recounts how she was approached by the couple. She said, “They will arrange visa and everything else for you. Artists are paid anything between $1000 and $10,000, depending on their popularity.”
Sanjjana Galrani of Dandupalya 2 fame also said, according to DNA, “Fact is that it is not a new thing going in the US. Mostly it is C or D-grade artists, doing supporting roles in films… they fall into this trap. Sometimes they are asked to come for a dance performance, where they are lured with more money. Other times its mutual agreement also.”
Recently lyricist Shreshta, who penned the songs of Arjun Reddy and Pelli Choopulu, alleged that sexual exploitation was not restricted only to the glamorous actresses in the industry, but even the lyricists had dark secrets they never spoke about.
Talking about her experience, the lyricist said that a producer’s wife had approached her, asking her to meet the sexual demands of her husband. When she refused, she was threatened by a man. “I was helpless. I warned them strongly and left the industry for a few months,” she said.
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A 42-page complaint against the NRI couple was filed as per the US Homeland Security investigations.
The president of Movie Artiste Association (MAA), Sivaji Raja recently said that the association was in touch with the leaders of organisations like the Telugu Association of North America (TANA) and American Telugu Association (ATA) so that the safety of the actress are ensured.
“Whoever wants to go to the US to participate in private events, should inform the MAA before leaving. We will guide artistes and verify if the event being organised is real or fake,” he said.