Film director Ali Abbas Zafar has entered a legal battle with producers Vashu Bhagnani and Jackky Bhagnani, with whom he collaborated on the Akshay Kumar-Tiger Shroff starrer Bade Miyan Chhote Miyan. Bhagnanis have A 17-page police complaint was filed against Ali, Claiming “criminal conspiracy” and “misappropriation of funds”, while the film’s crew has rallied in support of the director.

Bade Miyan Chhote Miyan actor Khalid expressed his disappointment on Instagram, saying that he had to “beg” Pooja Entertainment to clear his dues. Although Jackky Bhagnani promised payment, he later blocked Khalid, who revealed that it was Ali’s AAZ Films that ultimately paid his payment.

“In such a situation, it was only the AAZ Films team that always responded to calls and assured me that I would be paid. Khalid wrote, AAZ Films team paid us and cleared our dues.

Action director Parvez Shaikh also took to social media to defend Ali and said that the allegations against him and AAZ Films are “completely baseless”. He referred to his long-standing relationship with Ali since 2014 and said he never faced payment issues. Parvez said of AAZ Films, “They stick to their words when it comes to business.”

“Finally, after the release of subsidy money from Abu Dhabi for Bade Mian Chhote Mian, my dues were cleared. Parvez wrote on Instagram, I would like to thank the team of AAZ Films, especially Ali Abbas Zafar and Himanshu Mehra, who cleared all my payments and the salaries of the hardworking stuntmen through the Movie Stunt Artists Association.

The action director further claimed that the expensive equipment taken to London for the shooting of the film is still with the studio Pooja Entertainment, with no update on when they will be returned.

He said, “We have worked on another project called ‘Eagle’ with Pooja Entertainment in India and till date, we have not received the payment for the workers’ salaries and equipment.”

Film editor Steven Bernard also highlighted the delay in payment on Instagram, saying, “My father was hospitalized for over two months and I faced a very urgent and serious family emergency and needed money. Was. I followed regularly, but no success. All through, AAZ Films supported me and assured me that I would get my remuneration. Finally, this week, after the subsidy was released from Abu Dhabi, thanks to the team at AAZ Films, I got the last installment completed.

after Ali Abbas Zafar complained to FWICE Regarding non-payment of their dues, producers Vashu Bhagnani and Jackky Bhagnani released a copy of a police complaint they had filed against them weeks ago for ‘misappropriation of funds’ during the shooting of Bade Miyan Chhote Miyan .

Earlier, the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) had issued an official statement confirming that Ali and other directors making 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 directed Tiger Shroff-starrer Ganpat. None of these films performed well at the box office, causing financial losses to the producers.

Referring to Ali’s complaint, the federation said, “We have now received a complaint from director Mr. Ali Abbas Zafar about non-payment of his directorial fees for the film ‘Bade Miyan Chhote Miyan’, which is scheduled to release on April 11, 2024. “Not only this, we have received complaints from the largest union of daily wage workers, FSSAMU, regarding non-payment of dues of these poor daily wage workers (sic).”

Meanwhile, Bhagnani has also filed a lawsuit against Netflix for “fraud and conspiracy against the rights” of his three recent films – Hero No. 1, Mission Raniganj and Bade Miyan Chhote Miyan. The producer filed a complaint against Los Gatos Production Services India, which manages Netflix’s content investments in India, as well as Zoo Digital India and executives of both companies.

Additionally, reports suggest that the Economic Offenses Wing (EOW) has summoned the production services company for further investigation.