‘Bhooth Bangla’ controversy: Rs 48 lakh dues alleged by vendors amid Ekta Kapoor’s success post - report

On Wednesday, Ekta Kapoor took to Instagram to celebrate the success of her latest film ‘Bhooth Bangla’, praising Akshay Kumar, director Priyadarshan, and the film’s lead cast. The movie, which released on April 17, has grossed over Rs 211 crore worldwide. She expressed her heartfelt thanks to each of them, while giving special credit to Priyadarshan for delivering the biggest hit of her career.According to a report by Mid-day, multiple vendors associated with the film have accused the production house of failing to settle their payments. Despite ‘Bhooth Bangla’ releasing and performing well at the box office, several contributors claim their dues remain unpaid. One vendor stated that Rs 30 lakh is still pending, while another alleged that Rs 18 lakh has not been cleared.The report states that delays in clearing payments have become fairly widespread recently. After a film’s release, recovering pending dues from the production house often becomes even more challenging for crew members. The earlier norm of settling invoices within 90 days is no longer consistently followed. A vendor also alleged that payments are first made to the cast and main crew, while others are left waiting for months.Amid the ongoing allegations, Balaji Motion Pictures maintained that it has cleared all outstanding payments. “Balaji Telefilms Limited has fulfilled all its contractual payment obligations in relation to various projects undertaken by the company,” it said.Nikhil Pai, who worked as a second camera operator on Bejoy Nambiar’s romantic thriller ‘Tu Yaa Main’, recently took to his Instagram stories to address Aanand L Rai’s Colour Yellow Productions over pending dues. Tagging the production house, he wrote, “Congratulations on the theatre and Netflix release. Please clear the invoices. It’s beyond due… if you reply to calls and emails that would be much appreciated.” The film, featuring Adarsh Gourav and Shanaya Kapoor, released in theatres on February 13 and later premiered on Netflix India on April 10.