23 September,2026 03:10 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Radhika Apte. Pic via Instagram
Radhika Apte has spoken about the difficult reality actors can face when intimate scenes move beyond the screen and enter their personal lives. The actor recalled how a leaked clip from one of her films once left her so overwhelmed that she did not step out of her home for four days.
Speaking to India Today, Radhika Apte discussed the complicated relationship between on-screen intimacy, public scrutiny and an actor's privacy. She explained that while performers may be comfortable with what they agree to do professionally, the situation can become very different when footage is leaked without their control.
Radhika said the incident made her realise how quickly something involving an actor's work can affect their life outside the set. "We were talking about being able to do intimate scenes, but once something I had done was leaked, I literally couldn't step out of the house for four days," she said.
The actor recalled feeling particularly uncomfortable when people around her had seen the clip. Her stylist told her that even the driver at her home kept watching it and asking whether she would still be visiting her house. Radhika also discovered that her watchman had seen the footage.
For the actor, the incident was a reminder that the consequences of leaked intimate content can extend beyond online reactions. "The problem is that it can come home very quickly," she said, pointing to the possibility of strangers turning up at an actor's residence because they felt offended by something they had seen.
The experience also made Radhika concerned about her safety. At the time, she was living alone and decided to speak directly to the people responsible for driving and assisting her.
Radhika recalled calling her driver and spot guy after the leak and telling them about the situation. She asked whether they had seen the clip and made it clear that she needed people around her who were comfortable continuing to work with her and could protect her.
Both reassured her that they would look after her, which helped ease some of her fears. The actor also revealed that fear had influenced another professional decision in the past. Without naming the project, she said she once walked away from a role she "really, really wanted to do" because she feared that accepting it could put her family at risk.
Radhika said the decision was difficult because she had never previously allowed fear to dictate her choices. However, after hearing about similar incidents and receiving advice from director Anurag Kashyap, she chose not to proceed.
Radhika was recently seen alongside Vijay Varma, Abhishek Banerjee and Konkona Sen Sharma in Vikramaditya Motwane's Husband Swap, part of Lust Stories 3. The anthology is streaming on Netflix.
