Prateik Smita Patil breaks silence on being presumed gay: ‘In Hollywood, actors are open and accepted’

Prateik Smita Patil recently revisited an old statement he once made about the funniest rumour concerning him — ‘I’m done telling people I’m not gay’ — and offered context for the comment in a new interview with Bollywood Bubble.Prateik Smita Patil on being hit on by menExplaining where the speculation may have stemmed from, Prateik said, “I think I don’t know where that sprung from.Maybe it was a film I did… maybe Cobalt Blue. Also, I think early on in my career, in my 20s, I was getting a lot of male attention from gay men. I was getting hit on a lot, and it was quite direct.”He recalled the atmosphere of those years with honesty and humour, adding, “Back then, in our 20s, we were open-minded. We used to get a hand from here, a hand from there. You had to handle it with care and be smart — not offend people.”Prateik Smita Patil calls out regressive attitudes in BollywoodWhile he had once made a sharp comment about being misunderstood, Prateik now offered more empathy, saying, “Maybe people presumed things after Cobalt Blue. But we’re living in such times where it should be okay. Unfortunately, in Bollywood, being gay is still seen as a taboo. There’s still a ‘hoo-ha’ over who likes who. But come on, he’s a human being. Love is love.”

He also pointed out how the West is ahead of the curve. “In Hollywood, actors are open and accepted. It’s sad that it’s perceived differently here.”