Filmmaker Vikram Bhatt who is known for making the ‘Raaz’ franchise, ‘Kasoor’, ‘Awara Pagal Deewana’ among othershas reportedly been arrested in a ₹30 crore fraud case. The arrest took place during a joint operation by the Rajasthan Police and Mumbai Police at the home of Bhatt’s sister-in-law. Rajasthan Police will now seek transit remand from the Bandra Court so they can take him to Udaipur for further questioning.This comes after a lookout notice was issued for Bhatt, his wife Shwetambari Bhatt, and six others. They were asked to appear before Udaipur Police by December 8 and were barred from travelling abroad without permission.
The case began when Dr. Ajay Murdia, founder of Indira IVF Hospital, filed a complaint stating that he was convinced to invest more than ₹30 crore in a film project. He was allegedly promised that the profits could go up to ₹200 crore. According to the FIR filed at Bhupalpura Police Station, Bhatt agreed to make a biographical film on Dr. Murdia’s late wife and told him he would handle all the work. He reportedly asked for money as production progressed and said his wife and daughter were involved as associates. A company named VSB LLP was registered under Shwetambari Bhatt’s name for the project.Dr. Murdia had first approached Dinesh Kataria for help, and on Kataria’s advice, he met Bhatt at Vrindavan Studio in Mumbai on April 25, 2023. During this meeting, they discussed making the biopic. The film—titled Tumko Meri Kasam—was eventually released earlier this year, starring Esha Deol and Anupam Kher.In November, Bhatt spoke to NDTV and denied the allegations. He said, “I have read the FIR, and in my view it is misleading. The police have been completely misguided because the things written in the FIR are absolutely wrong.” He further added, “It’s obvious that he must have created some fabricated, forged documents. I don’t know what exactly, but there must be something he used to convince the police.”Bhatt has also claimed that Dr. Murdia suddenly stopped the production of another film titled Virat and failed to pay the technicians involved. The investigation into the case is still underway.
