Mallika Sherawat is known for her whimsical attitude towards her profession. She would always sign a film and take a hefty signing amount. Once she traps the filmmaker, she tries to arm-twist the producer and director. Stories of her tantrums and creative interference have always been the talk of tinsel town. The self-proclaimed international actress Mallika Sherawat is entangled in yet another controversy. This time, the actress cheated director Ankush Bhatt (of Bhendi Bazar Inc. fame) and Sagar Ballary (of Bheja Fry fame), by committing for both the directors’ films with almost similar roles. Stardust gives you firsthand information on the actress’ duplicity.
Mallika Sherawat was approached by Ankush Bhatt for his forthcoming film Mumbai Mirror. To be produced by XYZ, she took a signing amount of ` 50 lakhs for the film. She had even shot for two-three days, but after that she just disappeared. When the director tried to get in touch with her, she would not respond to his calls. She would create a fuss over everything, from food to make-up. She even wanted the producers to pay the entire remuneration in advance, which they refused. Finally, when she realized that they were not willing to succumb to her demands, she excused herself from the project by saying that she was not familiar with the world of gangsters and bar dancers. She was obviously lying throughout because she had signed Sagar Ballary’s film Saali Khushi where she is playing the role of con-woman and there is a portion where she is shown as a bar dancer. A source close to the unit reveals, “After signing Mumbai Mirror with Ankush Bhatt, she was offered a similar kind of role in Sagar Ballary’s movie. She kept Ankush waiting till Sagar signed her for the film. She not only cheated Ankush, but also beefed-up her remuneration and signed the film with Sagar.” While Sachiin Joshi plays the male lead in Mumbai Mirror, Vivek Oberoi plays the lead in Saali Khushi.
Having paid Mallika a whopping signing fee (approximately ` 50 lakhs) the producer found out that Mallika had a number of reservations about the film, and that included the director. In a panic the production house had to invest a large part of the last month trying to convince the diva that the project is worthy of her august presence. But she was adamant. Since the shooting in far-off exotic places was to begin from May, Ankush and his crew were stuck for a leading lady. Finally he had to scout a last-minute replacement and asked Mallika to refund the signing amount. Incidentally, the producer had agreed to pay her ` 2 crores for 15 days’ work.
Mallika had signed Mumbai Mirror because she couldn’t say no to the huge signing amount which was offered by the producers. But when Sagar approached her for Saali Khushi with Vivek Oberoi, she couldn’t resist it. “Mallika had worked with Vivek in Kismat Luv Paisa Dilli. She wanted to work with Vivek again,” says our source. “Mallika will play the title role of Khushi in Saali Khushi. It’s basically the part of a con-woman who goes through various adventures and episodes. She plays a bar dancer’s avatar in the most prominent section of the film.”
It is evident that Mallika gave a royal ditch to Sachiin Joshi and his director Ankush for Saal Khushi. Says a friend of Sachiin Joshi, “Mallika made excuses about how she couldn’t identify with the world depicted in the film. Then we hear she had gone and signed a film where she plays exactly the same role. What do we make of this?” The producers apparently want back the sizeable signing amount they gave Ms. Sherawat. But she is apparently in no mood to return the money. The friend says, “Her manager wants the signing amount to be ‘adjusted’. But we want no such adjustments and compromises. We just want to put the bitter experience behind.” Incidentally, Mallika walked the red carpet for the premiere of Sachiin Joshi’s film Aazaan in Dubai. Since then, Mallika and Sachiin have been good friends.
Mallika had reservations about the director Ankush Bhatt. She felt he hadn’t proved himself yet. The producer felt otherwise. They offered to show her the director’s first film Bhendi Bazar Inc. But she was not convinced. Then she had reservations about her role. So far Mallika has only played urban glamorous characters. In Mumbai Mirror, she was required to play an earthy woman from the street. It’s a character and a world that she wasn’t familiar with. Mallika wondered aloud if she would be able to pull it off,” says the friend.
Actor Sachiin Joshi reveals, “Mallika did have reservations regarding her role and the director. She wasn’t sure if Ankush would be able to deliver. I showed her Ankush’s first film Bhendi Bazaar Inc. Our film goes into an action space completely different from the stylized action that I did in Aazaan. It’s like Ram Gopal Varma’s Satya meets Anees Bazmi’s Ready. And I knew Ankush was the right person to direct it.” While Ankush and Sachiin Joshi decided to move on with their project, Sagar Ballary is in a fix. Now Vivek Oberoi clearly told the director that he will only be a part of the movie if Mallika is acting in it. Says a source, “Vivek is very clear on this, it’s either Mallika or no one at all. Vivek hit it off with Mallika during Kismat Luv Paisa Dilli.
