Actress Mehreen Pirzada, who is a part of both the Telugu and Tamil film industries, has issued a strong statement clarifying that she had given no interview as is being claimed by a gossip website.
The website had put out a report saying Pirzada had lashed out at reporters during a promotional event for Pantham, her forthcoming film with Gopichand, accusing the media of trying to drag her name in a sex racket in Canada involving Telugu film actresses.
Pirzada, in her statement, said, “This story is factually wrong. I have not given any such interview. I have very good rapport with the media as they have always treated me extremely well. In fact, I missed the last promotional event of Pantham as I was down with viral fever in Mumbai.
"Once and for all, I am stating what happened to me in the USA. I was travelling with my family from Vancouver [Canada] to Las Vegas for a weekend holiday. When I was going through immigration, on finding out that I am an actress in the Telugu movie industry, I was questioned by US border officials as to why I was travelling in the United States.
"The officials then told me about the scandal which was the first I heard about it. On finding out that I have nothing to do with the issue, the officials apologized to me and let me travel without further problems.
"I came out publicly regarding the incident for the sake of propriety as I felt it is best that I make a statement before anyone else assumes otherwise. The fact that I was embarrassed by the situation and very shaken up is a personal thing.
“It pains me that the actions of a few bad people have tarnished the image of a vibrant and thriving industry. I hope the perpetrators of this scandal are punished as they deserve to be.
"The Telugu movie industry has been very good to me and I mind it very much when its image gets tarnished. This is the last I will be saying regarding this incident and request the media to not print any stories quoting me without actually speaking with me. Thank you and lots of love.”