'Dangal' fame Fatima Sana Shaikh makes shocking revelations about the industry: 'Junior actors don't get that much respect, they are not even paid because...'

Bollywood actress Fatima Sana Shaikh made some surprising revelations about the industry in an interview with Bollywood Bubble.

She was quoted saying, “The side actors and junior actors don’t get that much respect. It’s like going through a daily attendance. In television, when you start shooting, your first payment happens after 3-4 months_. Aur aapko har din haazri deni padti hai_. The people working in the production are not even going to remind the seniors you are here.”

Fatima added, “They are not even going to count the day when you haven’t signed on a particular day. This is how they save their money. You only get paid 1000 or 1500 per day but at my age of 15 at that time, it was a lot.”

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2025 is already seeming to be a promising year for actress Fatima Sana Shaikh, as she prepares to dazzle audiences with a lineup of films that is set to showcase her versatility yet again.

Fans can look forward to seeing her in three feature films, including the much talked about Dharma production with the charming R. Madhavan on Netflix. The team recently were seen filming in Kolkata for the project.

But, in a recent interview with Bollywood Bubble, the actress exposed the South Indian industry’s casting couch.

“He asked me, ‘You will be ready to do everything, right?’ I told him that I will be working hard and will do what is required for the role,” she said. However, the agent, the Ludo actor said, kept repeating it. “I played dumb because I wanted to see how low he can get,” revealed the actress.

She then shared that “bade chote se producers (small producers)” in Hyderabad ‘would talk about it (casting couch) very openly’: “You know, here you have to meet people,” she said, quoting a Hyderabad producer.

While talking about wanting to become an actress, Fatima said, “My parents took me for auditions and I became a child actor. I had no idea what I wanted to do. I did a lot of work and then felt this was not my thing. As a child, I was working for too many hours. I was missing school and not happy being on sets.”