Radhika Apte has spoken about the deep distress she faced after an intimate clip from one of her films was leaked online, revealing that she could not step out of her home for four days. The actor, who currently features in Netflix’s Lust Stories 3, shared the experience during a recent interview with India Today, explaining how the leak quickly moved from the internet into her everyday life and made her feel unsafe in her own home.
The 41-year-old actor said the consequences of a leaked intimate scene are not limited to online trolling. She described how people she interacted with regularly began seeing the clip, including her watchman and the driver of her stylist.
‘I literally couldn’t step out of the house for four days’
Recalling the period after the leak, Radhika Apte said the situation became very difficult to handle because the clip reached people around her.
“We were talking about being able to do intimate scenes, but once something I had done was leaked, I literally couldn’t step out of the house for four days. The problem is that it can come home very quickly. Your doorbell can ring, and somebody can be outside your house because they felt offended. So, it’s not that easy. It’s much more complicated,” she told India Today.
She also remembered how her stylist informed her that her driver kept watching the clip and repeatedly asked whether she was going to Radhika’s house. Her own watchman had seen it as well.
“Things like that started happening, and it became very difficult to deal with,” she said.
Living alone and worried about safety
At the time of the leak, Radhika was living alone in an apartment, which made the situation even more frightening for her. She decided to speak directly to her driver and spot dada about the clip.
“I eventually called my driver and my spot dada and told them, ‘There is a clip that has been leaked. Have you seen it? Because if you have not, I’ll send it to you. Watch it. If you’re okay with it, then you have to protect me. Otherwise, do not work with me. Here’s your salary; you can go’,” she recalled.
Both of them reassured her that they would look after her. Radhika said their response gave her some comfort, but the experience left a lasting impact.
A project she turned down out of fear
Radhika Apte also revealed in the same interview that fear had once influenced a major professional decision. Without naming the project, she said she walked away from a role she “really, really wanted to do” because she was worried about the consequences for her family.
“There was also a project I really, really wanted to do — I can’t mention which one — but I couldn’t do it because I got very scared. It was because of the political environment at that particular time,” she said.
She added that filmmaker Anurag Kashyap had also advised her against taking up the project. Radhika said she felt ashamed because she had never before allowed fear to dictate her choices, but she ultimately chose to protect her family.
The leaked clip and its history
The intimate clip that Radhika Apte referred to is from the 2016 film Parched, directed by Leena Yadav and produced by Ajay Devgn. The scene featured Radhika and actor Adil Hussain. Two lovemaking sequences from the film surfaced online in August 2016 ahead of the film’s theatrical release. One showed Radhika’s bare back as she kissed Adil, while the other featured frontal nudity.
Reports from the time noted that the leaked scene was being sold as porn in some parts of the country. In 2021, a #BoycottRadhikaApte trend emerged on social media over the same scene. Adil Hussain responded to the trend at the time, calling it “absolutely ridiculous” and saying people did not understand the “difference between art and porn.”
An earlier leak took place in April 2015, when a nude clip from a short film directed by Anurag Kashyap for an international market went viral on WhatsApp. Kashyap filed a complaint with the Mumbai Police cyber cell over its unauthorised circulation.
Lust Stories 3 on Netflix
Radhika Apte currently stars in Lust Stories 3, the third instalment of Netflix’s Emmy-nominated anthology franchise. The film premiered on Netflix on September 18, 2026, and is available to stream worldwide, including in the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, India, and other regions.
Lust Stories 3 brings together four directors — Vikramaditya Motwane, Kiran Rao, Shakun Batra, and Vishal Bhardwaj — for four stories exploring love, desire, and relationships. The ensemble cast includes Radhika Apte, Konkona Sen Sharma, Aditi Rao Hydari, Radhika Madan, Sana Thampi, Vijay Varma, Abhishek Banerjee, Siddharth, Ali Fazal, and Gurfateh Pirzada.
Radhika features in Vikramaditya Motwane’s segment, which revolves around two married women, Paddy (Radhika Apte) and Shona (Konkona Sen Sharma), who feel neglected in their sexless marriages and consider swapping partners. The story also stars Vijay Varma and Abhishek Banerjee as their husbands.
Related:
Motherhood and return to work
Radhika Apte and her husband, British musician Benedict Taylor, welcomed their first child, a baby girl, in December 2024. She announced the news on Instagram by sharing a photo of herself breastfeeding her one-week-old baby during her first work meeting after giving birth. She returned to work almost immediately.
In February 2025, she attended the BAFTAs and shared a moment from the event showing the realities of balancing work and motherhood, including pumping breast milk during the ceremony. Her recent projects include Sister Midnight and Lust Stories 3.
Also Read: Radhika Apte Calls Out Old Shah Rukh Khan Films For Showing Stalking As Romance
From actors speaking out about online privacy to the latest OTT releases making waves, VvipTimes has you covered with stories that matter.
Leave a Reply