'Pyaar Ka Punchnama' director Luv Ranjan and producer Ankur Garg booked in Rs 1.21 crore cheating case by the Andheri-based financer of their Marathi film, 'Friends'
Luv Ranjan said he had suffered losses and he was not liable
Luv Ranjan said he had suffered losses and he was not liable
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Money has been known to make enemies out of friends before, and it's no different when it comes to director Luv Ranjan (of the Pyaar Ka Punchnama fame), who has now been booked in a Rs 1.21 crore cheating case over the Marathi film 'Friends'. Along with Luv, his partner in Luv Films, Ankur Garg has also been charged in the case.
The complaint was filed by Shivraj S (42), the Andheri-based financer of the film 'Friends'. The two accused were given distributor rights to the film, as per which they were supposed to take 12% of the profits and give the rest to him, which they allegedly failed to do.
Two contracts
As per the FIR lodged with MIDC police, Shivraj runs the company Mercury Digital Technology Pvt. In August 2015, a representative from Blue Eye Arts company, Archana Chanda, approached him with 'Friends'.
"She told me that the film has a big star cast from the Marathi film industry and that they were looking for an investor. She also told me that the movie was nearly 30% complete, and offered 35% of the profits," the complainant stated in the FIR.
Chanda then introduced Shivraj to the company's directors, Manish Chanda, Prem Vyas, R Madhesh and Sanjay Kelapure in a Vile Parle hotel. On August 21, 2015, a contract was drawn up between both parties and, subsequently, Shivraj transferred R1.25 crore to Blue Eye Arts through RTGS.
Shivraj said that on January 4, 2016, the directors of Blue Eye Arts gave the film's theatre distribution rights to Luv Films and took R37.5 lakh from them. When Shivraj found out about this, he asked about his investment in the project and was assured that he would get his money.
On January 6, 2016, a new agreement was effected, signed by Shivraj, Luv, Ankur and all four directors of Blue Eye Arts. The next day, an addendum agreement was signed between Shivraj and Blue Eye Arts, clarifying that the company was wholly responsible for the money they had taken from Luv Films. It was also decided that a joint bank account would be opened and the profits would be deposited in the same.
'Friends' released on January 15, and Luv Films collected R1.31 crore. Shivraj alleged that they had failed to hand over his share of the profits, which would be left over after they took 12%. He sent notices to them, but it did not yield any result, the FIR states.
"A case under Sections 406 and 409 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) and 34 (common intention) of the IPC was registered against the accused," said Shailesh Pasalwar, senior PI, MIDC police station. Despite repeated attempts to contact him, Shivraj was unavailable for comment.
The other side
"This is complete stupidity. I suffered losses and Shivraj is supposed to pay me nearly R80 lakh. Despite this, he is lodging a complaint against me. Blue Eye Arts and Shivraj were partners in production. They had signed a distribution deal with me. I paid them R1.25 crore and released their film. It was decided that if my money is recovered from the collection, then it's fine, otherwise they were supposed to pay me," said Ranjan, on behalf of Luv Films.
"The film failed to make good collection, so they should pay me back. I don't know what arrangement Shivraj and Blue Eye Arts had. I think Shivraj panicked and did not bring all the facts to the police. I am ready to furnish all the details, as I am the victim here."
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