A stage artiste and casting director has been booked for allegedly raping a TV actress on the pretext of marriage by the Versova police and a non-cognisable offence has also been registered against three friends of the accused artist for pressuring the actress to withdraw the case. The police registered a case against accused Ayush Tiwari, 27, last week after the actress submitted a written application accusing him of rape.

Tiwari and the woman got to know each other a couple of years ago. Last year, they met again while working on a film and exchanged numbers. They stayed in touch on phone and via WhatsApp and eventually got into a relationship.