Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India]: As producer Vashu Bhagnani and his production house, Pooja Entertainment, continue to face allegations of unpaid dues to crew members on several of his films, with some well-known names involved, the President of the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE), B.N. Tiwari, opened up about the complaints against Bhagnani.
“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 told media.
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,” Tiwari 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.
“No director wants their name to be in the market for publicity like this, and neither does the Federation want to defame anyone. For us, producers are as important as our technicians. I am sending this letter today to resolve the matter. Let’s arrange a joint meeting and try to solve everyone’s issues within a week.”
As of now, a response from Vashu Bhagnani or his team is still awaited.