I was mentally tortured: Ulka Gupta 2014

Ulka Gupta, who was recently replaced in Khelti Hai Zindagi Aankh Micholi — for her alleged unprofessionalism — has accused the makers of "mentally torturing" her. The 17-year-old actress was seen as 13-year-old Ami in the telly show.

Ulka says soon after the fourth episode hit the tube, the creative team started accusing her of poor performance. They even auditioned a few actresses to play Ami.

Says she, "How can the production house accuse me of unprofessionalism? I have shot 20 hours a day for almost three months. They made me report on the set at odd hours and would keep me waiting endlessly, as they shot with others. I am not comparing myself with Gautami (Gadgil Kapoor), but is it wrong to seek time off for studies? I even took a leaving certificate from my college and became a private student. My board exams are approaching and I need to study. All we requested was to reduce my shooting hours. When they didn't respond, I approached CINTAA (Cine & TV Artistes Association) to look into the matter, and, because of the latter's intervention, they verbally agreed to reduce my shooting hours. The stress took a toll on my health — my hemoglobin count dropped and I developed dark circles under my eyes. I was mentally tortured."