The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai Police has reportedly launched an investigation into a complaint filed by Bollywood producer Vashu Bhagnani against Netflix and its associated companies. According to a report in Economic Times, Bhagnani alleges that he was cheated and conspired against the rights to three films.
The complaint, filed against Los Gatos Production Services India, Zoo Digital India, and several executives of both companies, centers around the SVOD rights of the films “Hero No 1,” “Mission Raniganj,” and “Bade Miya Chote Miya.” Bhagnani claims that despite granting Netflix the rights to these films, he has yet to receive Rs 47.37 crore in payments.SVOD stands for Subscription Video on Demand, which is a business model where a consumer pays a recurring fee to access a streaming service’s content library.
Furthermore, Bhagnani claims that his company, Pooja Entertainment, was pressured to renegotiate the terms of the deal and was forced to deliver one of the films to Zoo Digital India. The film was allegedly leaked online before its theatrical release, causing significant financial and reputational damage to Bhagnani.
What Netflix said on the allegations
Netflix has vehemently denied the allegations.” The company asserts that it has a strong history of partnerships with the Indian creative community and is cooperating with the authorities to resolve the dispute. “These claims are completely unfounded. Indeed, it’s Pooja Entertainment that owes Netflix money,” a Netflix spokesperson told ET. “We have a strong track record of partnership with the Indian creative community and are working with the authorities to resolve this dispute.”
The EOW has summoned executives from Los Gatos Production Services India for questioning and is conducting a thorough investigation into the matter. Depending on the findings, the police may decide to convert the preliminary inquiry into a formal first information report.