Representative image Key Highlights Sources in Tollywood said of five trafficking victims, the two well-known actresses hail from Bengaluru and Chennai. Tollywood sources cite videos of the two actresses attending Telugu association conferences in the US. HYDERABAD: Chilling details of sex trafficking of Tollywood actresses to the US include names of two top southern starlets. The expose followed the arrest of kingpin Kishan Modugumudi alias Sreeraj Chennupati and Chandrakala by US federal agents in Chicago. Sreeraj worked as a production manager in Tollywood before running a flesh trade in the garb of Telugu meets abroad. Sources in Tollywood said of five trafficking victims mentioned in the criminal complaint at Homeland Security Investigations in United States district court of North District of Illinois Eastern Division, the two well-known actresses hail from Bengaluru and Chennai. Starlet Sri Reddy, who hit headlines for fighting the casting couch menace in Tollywood, told the media on Friday that the NRI couple had approached her too. “Usually when artists fail to get offers, they go to the US and are lured into prostitution. Artists are paid over $1,000, depending on their popularity,” she said. Tollywood sources cite videos of the two actresses attending Telugu Association conferences in the US in which one of them thanked Sreeraj for helping her participate in the event in 2016. Sreeraj was also seen attending the event. Following the expose, Movie Artists Association has decided to hold a meeting on June 24 to discuss the issue. Read also: Sex trafficking of Tollywood actresses in US - How the racket was busted Speaking to TOI, Movie Artistes Association president Shivaji Raja said, “We are aware of Kishan Modugumudi’s suspicious activities. He worked as a production manager and co-produced at least two films. We have been warning artists not to go abroad for performances with those with dubious antecedents. Few years ago, when I was vice-president, we noticed suspicious activity. Usually, artists are not aware of the visa type issued to them for attending conferences in United States, Dubai , Singapore or Australia. We are meeting on June 24 on the issue. We are requesting artists to inform MAA about performance schedules and attendance at events abroad so that we can talk to organisers or associations and verify credentials.” In 2016, two actors Anasuya and Sampoornesh Babu criticised Sreeraj Chennupati for his alleged misbehaviour while extending an invite for a Telugu conference in the States. Actor Anasuya told TOI, “I haven’t visited the United States for a long time. I attended an event with music composer Devisriprasad way back in 2014. In 2016, Sreeraj contacted me from his American number, asking me to attend a Telugu association event. I was uncomfortable with the way he spoke. He was talking about making a commitment. I refused to attend the event. Despite my refusal, he put my picture on poster. I tweeted saying, I have nothing to with the event.” Read this story in Telugu<doc-sep>It looks like Tollywood is going through a rough patch dealing with back-to-back controversies. Recently, an Indian-origin couple in Chicago, USA, was arrested for running a sex racket in the country. According to a Deccan Chronicle report, three top actresses from the South were summoned by the police for questioning. It is said that these actresses were questioned for nearly six hours at an international airport in the US. "After the arrest of the couple - film producer Mogudumidi Kishan and his wife Chandra - operating a sex racket, the US police recovered the names and details of all Tollywood actresses who were in touch with them. When they found these three actresses on the list - they were in touch with the couple and had exchanged many messages/mails and were frequent travellers to the US - the authorities called them in for questioning for nearly six hours," a source told the daily. The actresses were asked to prove their innocence and were released after it was found that they had gone to the US to participate in an event. The daily reports that one of the three actresses, who recently gave a flop bilingual film, is famous in both, the Tamil and Telugu industry. The second actress was in the news for her relationship with an actor from a star family. The third actress is popular in Kannada industry and has done a handful of films in Telugu as well. ALSO SEE | Indian couple arrested for running Tollywood sex racket in US<doc-sep>
When police officials busted a high-profile sex racket in the US, it resulted in the arrest of an NRI couple - Mogudumidi Kishan (alias Sreeraj Chennupati) and his wife Chandra. Further, the police discovered a ledger bearing the names of Tollywood actresses who were allegedly involved in the sex racket. Recently, actress Sri Reddy revealed that she was approached by the couple. Now, anchor-actress Anasuya has opened up about her encounter with them. She told a leading daily, "I haven't visited the United States for a long time. I attended an event with music composer Devi Sri Prasad way back in 2014. In 2016, Sreeraj contacted me from his American number, asking me to attend a Telugu association event. I was uncomfortable with the way he spoke. He was talking about making a commitment. I refused to attend the event. Despite my refusal, he put my picture on poster. I tweeted saying I have nothing to with the event." Apart from Anasuya, Shivaji Raja, President of Movie Artistes Association, has also reacted to the controversy. "We are aware of Kishan Modugumudi's suspicious activities. He worked as a production manager and co-produced at least two films. We have been warning artists not to go abroad for performances with those with dubious antecedents. Few years ago, when I was vice-president, we noticed suspicious activity," he told a daily. He added that they have convened a meeting on June 24 to discuss the issue. The association has requested artists to inform MAA about performance schedules and events abroad so that they can intervene and verify the organiser's credentials. With Sri Reddy's casting couch revelations and the recent Tollywood sex racket, Telugu industry seems to be in a state of shock. ALSO SEE | Sri Reddy on Tollywood sex racket in US: I was approached by the couple too