Vashu Bhagnani And Jackky Bhagnani Accuse Ali Abbas Zafar For Siphoning Of Funds, Director Seeks Payment of Rs 7.5 Cr

Bade Miyan Chote Miyan producers Vashu Bhagnani, Jackky Bhagnani have filed a complaint against Ali Abbas Zafar.

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New Delhi: Father-son producer duo Vashu Bhagnani and Jackky Bhagnani of Pooja Entertainment have filed a complaint against director Ali Abbas Zafar for siphoning the subsidy funds he took from Abu Dhabi authorities during the shoot of Bade Miyan Chote Miyan. 

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The complaint was filed at Bandra Police Station on September 3, 2024. The complainants accuse Ali Abbas Zaffar, Himanshu Mehra, Ekesh Ranadive, and others of multiple serious offenses, including fraud, cheating, misappropriation of funds, criminal conspiracy, money laundering, and harassment. 

They are accused of inflating budgets, receiving kickbacks, fabricating invoices, and siphoning funds through a shell company in Abu Dhabi. Vashu Bhagnani claims that despite assurances, the accused mishandled contracts failed to provide proper financial records, and demanded unapproved payments. 

Bade Miyan Chote Miyan Director Seeks Payment Of Rs 7.5 Cr

Reportedly, Ali Abbas Zafar has accused the producers of not paying him Rs 7.30 crore, which was his fee for directing the movie. The President of the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE), BN Tiwari told ANI, "We first received a complaint from Tinu Desai. He had a pending balance of about Rs 33 lakhs for Mission Raniganj. Later, Vashu Bhagnani asked for some time, saying the payment would be made within a month. Part of the payment for our elite labour union was made after a month, but Tinu Desai's payment is still pending."

Tiwari also mentioned another complaint from director Ali Abbas Zafar, who has not been paid his fees for directing Akshay Kumar-Tiger Shroff starrer 'Bade Miyan Chote Miyan.' "The payments keep getting delayed, and there hasn't been a proper response. So, during this time, we were waiting, and then we received a complaint from Ali Zafar for Rs 7.5 crores," he said.

Stating that attempts have been made to communicate with Bhagnani's team to resolve the issue, Tiwari said, "A letter was sent to Vashu Bhagnani stating that we received complaints from the Directors' Association, Himanshu, and Ali Zafar, so their payments should be cleared. He asked us to send the payment details. We gathered the details and sent them, but even after sending them, it's taking time."

The FWICE President also claimed that there are other pending payments, like director Vikas Bahl, who has not been paid Rs 2.5 crores for Ganapath.

"We are trying to understand what the issue is--whether the subsidiary doesn't have the funds or if there are many other people to pay, like Vikas Bahl, who also sent a message saying his Rs 2.5 crores for Ganapath are still pending. We have received many such letters," he said.

Tiwari emphasised that his team is working hard to resolve the matter and hopes Bhagnani will clear the payments soon.