Bhubaneswar: Soon after a woman journalist filed a police complaint against Odia film producer Sanjay Nayak aka Tutu accusing him of slapping her here on Friday, the latter sought apology for the incident.
In a text message to the journalist, Debasmita Rout, working with ETV Bharat, Nayak said he considered her as a member of the media family like other journalists. “We know each other for a long time. You are like my daughter. You have also come to my house several times to meet me,” he said in the message.
Narrating the incident, Nayak said while he was coming out of Swati cinema hall, he found her standing at the main entrance and called her. “You probably could not hear when I called you by your name due to loud music being played outside at the time. So I went to you and tapped on your back. At this time, you got startled and our boom fell down from your hands. While I was going to pick it up, other journalists present there picked it up and gave it to you,” he wrote.
He further wrote, “I admit that I caressed your cheeks out of affection as you are of my daughter’s age and asked you whether you have taken food or not. You replied in affirmative with a smile. Then I walked away.”
The film producer said when he came to know that Debasmita was hurt by his behaviour, he called up her on her mobile phone number to say sorry. “But you did not receive the call. Hence I am sending the text message to say sorry for my behaviour which might have hurt you,” Nayak said in the text message.
Earlier in the day, Debasmita filed a complaint with Kharavela Nagar Police, accusing him of slapping her without any provocation while she was covering a film release event at a theatre in the city.
“Film producer Tutu Nayak slapped me on the face without any reason and hurled abuses at me. It happened so suddenly that I dropped my boom and mobile phone on the ground. As I was picking up the boom and phone, he again hit me on the back,” she said.
Also Read: Woman Journalist Accuses Producer Tutu Nayak Of ‘Slapping’ Her While Covering Event In Bhubaneswar
