Anybody who has been harassed should approach the cops: Pushkar Jog

Pushkar Jog, who is fondly addressed as Pushki not just by his Bigg Boss Marathi co-contestant Sai Lokur, but also by all his fans, was in the city recently. During his visit, he spoke to us about his life after the Bigg Boss and the ongoing #MeTooIndia movement.
When asked him about his life after Bigg Boss, Pushkar admits with a sigh that things have become better on the career front now.However, his work commitments are keeping him on his toes, giving little time to rest. “I have not had time to rest ever since the show got over. In fact, the very next day, I was at the recording studio, dubbing for my next Marathi outing. Every day, I’m either shooting or making appearances in some or the other events. I must confess that I’m in a happy space; I can’t thank God and my fans enough for this wonderful phase.”
Pushkar also opened up about his current equation with Megha Dhade and Sai, with whom he shared a great camaraderie during the show. “Sai is a dear friend as she was my constant companion on the show. She is a pure soul and even though we are not being able to meet very often these days due to our work commitments, we are somehow trying to stay in touch. With Megha, I had shot for a Marathi show Navra Asava Tar Asa recently where we were like two professionals. She is too busy doing different kinds of work these days, but I wish her all the best. Now that she has entered Hindi Bigg Boss, I’m sure she’s going to do well there as well.”
Updating us on his work front, he says, “I went to Australia to shoot for my travel show, which went on air recently. I’m eagerly waiting for my upcoming film Ti Aani Ti with Sonalee and Prarthana Behere to release. It is directed by Mrinal Kulkarni. So, here’s to woman power.”
Talking about women power, the latest #MeTooIndia movement has swept the nation with a slew of women belonging to varied fields calling out sexual predators at their respective workplace. On this, Pushkar who was seen firmly standing up for women in the house, against the men who misbehaved, says that simply going to the media or writing on the social media will not serve the purpose. It is important to seek help from the concerned departments. He adds, “I’m happy that women are exposing men for their sexual misconduct. But I strongly feel that anybody who is sexually harassed should approach the cops instead of going to media. The guilty should no doubt be punished for his act, but we need to look at all the sides and not blindly believe anyone. If you are taking big names, you need to prove it too.”
Also, except for Sai Tamhankar, no #metoo stories have come out and no names have been popped up from the Marathi industry till now. Does that mean that artistes from Marathi cinema have not been through any such experience ever? To this, he replies, “Casting couch does happen in Indian film industry; I would not like to segregate as Marathi industry or Bollywood. As far as Marathi actors are concerned, I fail to understand why women are not speaking up if at all they have been harassed or felt uncomfortable at any point in their career. I strongly urge those who have been a victim of sexual harassment or have given back to the sexual predators to come forward and speak. I’ll be the first person to support them. But I would like to reiterate that one should approach the cops and let the court decide the truth.”