Bade Miyan Chote Miyan producers accuse director Ali Abbas Zafar of siphoning funds; file complaint

Vashu Bhagnani and Jackky Bhagnani of Pooja Entertainment have filed a complaint against Ali Abbas Zafar for siphoning the subsidy funds he took from Abu Dhabi authorities during the shoot of Bade Miyan Chote Miyan. The film, starring Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff in lead roles, released in theatres on April 11. (Also read: Jackky Bhagnani's production house Pooja Entertainment's Mumbai office sold to pay off ₹250 crore debt: Report)

About the complaint

The complaint was filed at Bandra Police Station on September 2, 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. The allegations stem from their involvement in the production of the film Bade Miyan Chote Miyan (BMCM).

The complainant asserts that Zaffar and his associates misrepresented their abilities and mismanaged the film's production, leading to significant financial losses. They are accused of inflating budgets, receiving kickbacks, fabricating invoices, and siphoning funds through a shell company in Abu Dhabi. Additionally, Bhagnani claims that despite assurances, the accused mishandled contracts, failed to provide proper financial records, and demanded unapproved payments. This, along with claims of extortion, coercion, and defamation, has led Bhagnani to seek legal action.

More details

Earlier, as per a report by Dainik Bhaskar, Ali Abbas Zafar had accused the producers of not paying him ₹7.30 crores, which he said was his fee for directing Bade Miyan Chote Miyan.

Meanwhile in June, several crew members accused the production house, Pooja Entertainment, for not clearing their payments on time. A crew member, Ruchita Kamble, took to Instagram to pen a long post where she urged others not to work with the production house. Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) president BN Tiwari also claimed that Vashu Bhagnani owes over ₹65 lakh to crew members who worked on three of his films-Mission Raniganj, Ganapath and Bade Miyan Chote Miyan.

In an official statement, Jackky said Akshay has asked for his payments from the film, Bade Miyan Chote Miyan, to be on hold until the entire cast and crew have been paid. Pooja Entertainment, set up in 1986, is known for backing projects such as Coolie no.1, Biwi no.1, Rangrezz, Shaadi no.1 and Jawaani Jaaneman.

Bade Miyan Chote Miyan was a dud at the box office as it registered a business of ₹59.17 crores. It was made on a high budget of almost ₹350 crore. Also starring Prithviraj Sukumaaran, Alaya F and Manushi Chillar, the action film received poor reviews upon release.