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The alleged harassment of actress Bipasha Basu has once again brought to fore the lack of safety for Bollywood stars, however, the core issue is getting lost in titillating debates over whether she was sexually molested or mentally harassed. What is conveniently forgotten is that when Bipasha had asked organisers of an overseas event celebrating India's Independence Day to "send known men for picking her up", then why was her request not heeded?

Clearly, this disregard is the symptom of a larger lack of concern for safety of people working in Bollywood that runs deep and wide. Not so long ago, Bipasha was manhandled by hooligans in Jaipur, violently mobbed in Delhi and pounced upon by a man in a Mumbai nightclub.

Similarly, Rakhi Sawant was allegedly molested at a party by pop singer Mikka and was earlier mobbed during a stage performance. In fact, a series of reports of sexual and mental harassment have come to the fore even as a bigger chunk of women remain quiet to avoid being labelled publicity-seekers.

"If I get molested, people will think I am doing it for publicity? This is a tragedy," says newcomer Mona Chopra, who alleges she was filmed while changing clothes at a film's set and the clip was circulated via MMS.

Besides, lack of security at sets has been a long-standing complaint of both actors and stunt-performers. Former beauty queen Sushmita Sen developed a crick in her neck this week during the shooting of film "Zindaggi Rocks". As always, the studio had no immediate medical facilities and she had to seek help from her own family doctor.

Sushmita had earlier suffered serious injuries when her hair had got entangled in a table fan at a film's set. In fact, the list of Bollywood stars who have sustained injuries while shooting, purely out of lack of precautions, is long and includes reigning stars like Hrithik Roshan, Aishwarya Rai, Akshay Kumar, Preity Zinta, Viveik Oberoi, Abhishek and Amitabh Bachchan.

In fact, stunt performers in Bollywood do not have a long working life. After working for about seven years, they usually retire since their body no longer allows them to take the pressure and risks associated with the dangerous stunts they perform.

In case of an accident, only luck can save them. Stuntman Habib recounts: "My father died while shooting as a double for Anil Kapoor. The scene required him to be in a car that was to sink in water. Due to some problem, the car's door did not open and he died.

"I am working to keep my father's name alive, but who knows what will happen to us? Here one needs some financial backing for the family. One of my friends is currently sitting at home without work after getting injured while performing a stunt," said Habib.

For stunt director Moses, it's the lack of organisation in the sector that hurts the profession. "There is no organised force, no public lobby for these daily wage earners."

However, with Bollywood going abroad for shoots so often, the props have become less hazardous. After the introduction of new safety gadgets like air packets to break a fall or fire retardant gel for fire scenes, there has been discernable decrease in deaths on sets.

Clearly, change is possible even in Bollywood. So, what is holding the Hindi film industry back from taking stern steps to provide a mechanism for checking incidents of sexual, mental and physical harassment of men and women working in Bollywood?

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