Mumbai, Jan 20: Even as Brazilian police are investigating widespread allegations of sexual assault, molestation and rape against a contestant of the Brazilian version of the international reality show Big Brother, the incident draws parallels with last month’s allegations put by Bollywood actress Pooja Misrra on Bigg Boss contestant Akashdeep Sky Saigal.
Pooja had claimed that she suspected Sky of giving her a “love bite” as she slept under heavy medication late one night on Big Brother’s Indian version Bigg Boss.
While talking to reporters at a packed press conference, Pooja had alleged, “I was on medication inside the House, and heavily dozed off one night. I was shocked to see a love bite on my neck the next morning. Angry and nervous, I went around asking who did that to me! Even the production team was not ready to give me an answer.”
When asked who she thought might be the person who gave her the love bite, Pooja had said, “Amar (Upadhyay) is a married man, while Siddharth (Bhardwaj) is a kid. So it must be Sky (Akashdeep Saigal).”
Commenting on Pooja’s allegation, her publicist Dale Bhagwagar had said, “After returning from her second innings on the show, when Pooja first told me about this love bite, I wasn’t sure if she should bring it up in the media without proper investigation. However, she was extremely upset and spoke about it at the press conference.”
Meanwhile, as the Brazilian Big Brother controversy rages, the country’s police have questioned the show’s participants, after Big Brother announced that contestant Daniel Echaniz was being thrown out over suspicions of “gravely inadequate” behavior.
The 31-year-old male model was removed from the show after allegations emerged that he had engaged in ‘sexual behavior’ with contestant Monique Amin after she’d passed out in bed. Program footage showed the two on bed, with leopard-print sheets moving for a full five minutes as Amin lay motionless.
Echaniz's removal from the show has also sparked a buzz about racism, as the dark-skinned male model is of mixed race, while Amin is white.