Bade Miyan Chote Miyan hit theatres in April this year but was rejected by the audience and critics alike.
Jackky Bhagnani and Vashu Bhagnani allege a fraud of Rs 9.50 crore by Ali Abbas Zafar.
Vashu Bhagnani and Jackky Bhagnani of Pooja Entertainment have filed a complaint against filmmaker Ali Abbas Zafar for allegedly siphoning the subsidy funds he took from Abu Dhabi authorities during the shoot of Bade Miyan Chote Miyan. Reportedly, the complaint against Zafar was filed on September 3 and the director is likely to be summoned by the Bandra Police in Mumbai soon.
In their complaint, Bhagnanis alleged fraud of Rs 9.50 crore by Ali Abbas Zafar and accused him of “coercion, criminal breach of trust, extortion, blackmailing, criminal intimidation, harassment, criminal defamation and money laundering”. The complaint further alleged that Zafar used these funds via a shell company in Abu Dhabi.
Earlier today, it was reported that Ali Abbas Zafar also accused Bhagnanis of not paying him Rs 7.30 crores, his fee for directing Bade Miyan Chote Miyan. As reported by Dainik Bhaskar, Zafar filed an official complaint with the Directors’ Association asking them to intervene. Following the complaint, the Federation of Western Indian Cine Employees (FWICE) also sent a letter to Vashu Bhagnani, seeking an explanation for the unpaid dues.
However, Pooja Entertainment denied Zafar’s claims and issued a statement which said, “The dues claimed do not constitute a legitimate claim and are liable to various set-offs, as informed to us by BMCM Films Ltd.” Later, FWICE also asked Ali Abbas Zafar to submit proof of his unpaid dues claim.
Talking about Bade Miyan Chote Miyan, the original film was directed by David Dhawan. It starred Amitabh Bachchan and Govinda in titular roles and was released in 1998. On the other hand, the new Bade Miyan Chote Miyan starred Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff in the lead. However, when the film hit theatres in April this year, it was rejected by the audience and critics alike. Ali Abbas Zafar is yet to give a successful film after going independent from YRF.
In Short
- ‘Bade Miyan…’ producers filed a complaint against director Ali Abbas Zafar for fund misappropriation
- Ali also filed a complaint about non-payment by the producers
- Other directors also accused producers of non-payment
Producers Vashu Bhagnani and Jackky Bhagnani on Tuesday, September 3, filed a complaint against director Ali Abbas Zafar at the Bandra Police Station for siphonining of funds during the shoot of their film, Bade Miyan Chote Miyan. The news comes a day after Ali filed a complaint with the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE), accusing the producers of non-payment.
In their complaint, the producers alleged that Ali misappropriated the subsidy funds he took from Abu Dhabi authorities during the shoot of the film. As per a statement shared by the team of Pooja Entertainment, the Bandra Police is expected to summon the director soon.
The document shared by the producers with the media states that, along with Ali, the film’s writer Himanshu Rao and Ekesh Ranadive were also accused in the case. The document read, “Request to lodge an FIR and take action against (1) Mr Ali Abbas Zafar, (2) Mr. Himanshu Mehra, (3) Mr. Ekesh Ranadive and all of their accessories (“the accused”) – on account of fraud, theft, cheating, coercion, criminal breach of trust, intention to defraud, misappropriation of funds, criminal conspiracy, extortion, blackmailing, theatres/ criminal intimidation, harassment, criminal defamation, money laundering/ financial embezzlement i.e. fabrication of invoices, illegally operating accounts/ siphoning funds through a shell company in Abu Dhabi (Jolly Jumper Films LLC) to unjustly enrich themselves at the cost of the Complainant in the name of Film Production and malafide intention (sic).”
Ali’s complaint to FWICE
Earlier, FWICE released an official statement confirming that Ali, along with other directors who made films for Pooja Entertainment, had claimed non-payment of their dues. This includes Tinu Desai who directed Akshay Kumar-starrer Mission Raniganj and Vikas Bahl who helmed Ganpat, starring Tiger Shroff in the lead. None of these films performed well at the box office and producers suffered losses.
FWICE’s statement read, “There have been certain speculations going on in the media regarding non-payment of dues to the technicians, workers, artists, and vendor by Vashu Bhagnani – Producer of M/s. Pooja Entertainment. We would therefore like to make certain clarifications in the above regard. FWICE has received complaints from our various affiliated associations belonging to different crafts (sic).”
It further mentioned, “Director Tinu Desai has filed a complaint about not being paid the balance amount towards his remuneration of Film ‘MISSION RANIGANJ’ which was released on 6th of Oct. 2023. Our constant follow-ups on Tinu Desai’s matter have not yielded any results to date. We have also received individual complaints from the technical crew and vendors of the Film ‘GANPAT’ which was directed by Mr. Vikas Behl and was released on 20th Oct 2023.”
The federation mentioned Ali’s complaint and stated, “We have now received a complaint from Director Mr. Ali Abaas Zafar for not being paid his direction fees for the film ‘BADE MIYAN CHOTE MIYAN’ which was released on 11th April 2024. Not only this, we have received complaints from the largest association of daily wage setting workers FSSAMU, regarding the non-payment of the dues of these poor daily wage workers (sic).”
The federation concluded the statement by mentioning that they are hoping Vashu Bhagnani would come forward, address these complaints and clear the payments “which would be in the interest of all those who contribute to making the film as it’s their right to earn what they have worked for”.
Neither Vashu nor Jackky have not released any statement on the complaints yet.