Ali Abbas Zafar gets backing of crew

Bollywood movie “Bade Miyan Chote Miyan” director Ali Abbas Zafar received backing from the crew in his dispute with the producer of the movie.

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Controversy erupted when the filmmaker accused Vashu Bhagnani-led Pooja Entertainment of non-payment of fee for the action flick, starring Bollywood stars Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff.

Ali Abbas Zafar and several other crew members approached authorities to lodge a complaint against Pooja Entertainment for alleged non-payment of dues.

In response, the production company filed a complaint against the ‘Bade Miyan Chote Miyan’ director for allegedly siphoning of funds to his personal account.

Now, several crew members of the Bollywood movie supported the filmmaker’s claims while mentioning that they were paid off by Zafar after he received subsidy money from Abu Dhabi, Pinkvilla reported.

Leading action director Parvez Shaikh claimed that Pooja Entertainment’s allegations against the director were baseless.

Read more: Netflix reacts to ‘Bade Miyan Chote Miyan’ producer’s accusations

“I read an article about false accusations and maligning of a reputed director/producer by Pooja Films. The truth is the other way around. I was the action director of the film BMCM and the accusations on AAZ Films are baseless. I have been working with Ali Abbas Zafar sir since 2014 and never faced any issues with the payments and they are people of their word when it comes to business,” he wrote in a social media post.

“Finally, after the subsidy from Adu Dhabi for BMCM was released, I would like to thank Ali Abbas Zafar and Himanshu Mehra who cleared all my wages and payments for the hardworking stunt men through the movie stunt artist association,” he added.

Actor Khalid, who played a small part in the movie, also revealed getting paid by Ali Abbas Zafar, instead of the ‘Bade Miyan Chote Miyan’ producers.

Film editor Steven Bernard also shared his take on the controversy around the non-payment of crew’s fees.

“While working on BMCM with Pooja Films, we faced one common problem – payments were irregular and often delayed,” he said. “I followed up regularly, but there was no breakthrough. Throughout, AAZ films were supportive and assured me that I would receive my remuneration. Finally, this week after the subsidy from Abu Dhabi was released, thanks to the team from AAZ Films, I received the last installment in full.”