Bade Miyan Chote Miyan director Ali Abbas Zafar, Mission Raniganj director Tinu Desai and Ganpat producer Vikas Bahl have accused Pooja Entertainment head Vashu Bhagnani and his son Jacky Bhagnani of not paying their fees. The matter has now reached the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE), which has issued an official statement in this regard.

FWICE statement against Bhagnani Regarding non-payment of dues, you can read, “There has been some speculation in the media about non-payment of dues to technicians, workers, artistes and vendors by Producer Vashu Bhagnani of M/s Pooja Entertainment. Hence we would like to make some clarifications in regard to the above. FWICE has received complaints from our various affiliated unions belonging to various crafts.”

The statement further said, “Director Tinu Desai has filed a complaint for non-payment of the balance amount of remuneration for the film ‘Mission Raniganj’, which is releasing on 6 October 2023. Our continuous follow-up on Tinu Desai’s case has not yielded any result till date. We have also received individual complaints from the technical crew and vendors of the film ‘Ganpat’, which was directed by Shri Vikas Bahl and released on 20 October 2023.”

The statement said, “We have received a complaint from director Shri Ali Abbas Zafar that he has not been paid his directorial fees for the film ‘Bade Miyan Chote Miyan’ which is releasing on 11th April 2024. Not only this, we have also received a complaint from FSSAMU, the largest organisation of daily wage workers, regarding non-payment of dues of these poor daily wage workers. We have gone through all the contracts and have come to the conclusion that our workers, technicians, artists and vendors are owed a huge amount which has to be paid by the said producer. We are trying our best to sort out the above issues and hope that Vashu Bhagnani ji will come forward and approve all the payments, which will be in the interest of all those who have contributed in making the film as it is their right to earn what they have worked for.”

Meanwhile, Vashu and Jacky Bhagnani of Pooja Entertainment have filed a complaint against Ali Abbas Zafar, accusing him of misusing the subsidy amount received from Abu Dhabi authorities during the shooting of Bade Miyan Chote Miyan. The complaint was filed at Bandra Police Station on September 3, 2024. Police officials are expected to summon the director soon.

Earlier it was said that Pooja Entertainment’s office in Juhu, Mumbai was sold to pay off a debt of Rs 250 croreThe production house was also accused of not paying dues and sacking 80 per cent of its employees. Bhagnani later clarified the rumours, saying that the office space still belonged to them. However, they have moved to their old office as it was a “lucky location” for them.

According to reports, Pooja Entertainment’s financial troubles were due to the poor performance of films like Bade Miyan Chote Miyan, Mission Raniganj and Bell Bottom. However, Vashu Bhagnani said that hits and flops are common in the film industry and it does not completely determine the company’s path.