The trouble seems to be mounting for the producers of Sonam Kapoor-starrer Neerja as the Bhanot family has now moved the Chandigarh High Court, accusing them of criminal conspiracy.
According to a report in Mid-Day, the family has filed a petition against the chief managing director of Bling Entertainment Solutions Ltd, Atul Kasbekar, for allegedly breaching the contract they had entered before the making of the film.
Here’s what the petition says:
“The entire episode has trappings of a criminal conspiracy between respondent (Bling Unplugged) and Fox Star Studios India Pvt Ltd, who right from the inception of the agreement (between the family and the producers), in a planned manner had dishonestly induced the petitioners and family members of late Rama Bhanot with the intention of wrongful gains to themselves,” the petition moved by the family before the Punjab and Haryana High Court has stated.”
As per the original agreement with Neerja’s mother, Rama Bhanot, the earlier report suggests that the producers were supposed to share 10% of the net profits of the film.
Later however, they reportedly offered to pay only a small fraction of it. The failure in keeping their promise led Akhil and Aneesh Bhanot, the brothers of Neerja, sending the producers a notice in May.
In their defence, the producers had reportedly claimed that their share of profit came down due to getting into another contract with the Fox Star, which co-produced Neerja.
It all started in October last year, when the meeting between the representatives of both the parties and the former Union law minister and senior lawyer Kapil Sibal, failed in reaching a conclusion.
(Feature Image Source: Twitter)