TV producer Anirudh Pathak has been in the news for quite a while for defaulting on payments of actors of his show ‘Daastan-E-Mohabbat Salim Anarkali’. Anirudh has not paid several people from the TV industry and owes nearly 5 crores to them.
The actors are finally raising their voices and have filed a complaint in the CINTAA. General Secretary of CINTAA, Amit Behl, talked about it in an interview with ETimes TV and shared, “Anirudh has conned several people including the spotboys, technicians. He owes the industry and not just Gurdip, Tasneem and Shahbaaz. The amount he has to clear runs into crores. Contact B N Tiwari, President of the FWICE (Federation of Western India Cine Employees) and he and his team can give you the full lowdown.”
Reportedly, the payment of actors from ‘Daastan-E-Mohabbat Salim Anarkali’ including Tasneem, Gurdip, and Shahbaaz Khan not been cleared.
Tasneem talked about it in an interview with BT, she revealed, “I had heard that Anirudh does not have a clean image in the TV industry when it comes to payments but I did the show simply for Amitabh Raina who was the Creative Head on the show. Raina kept coaxing me and I eventually gave in. A few months later, I was shocked to see Raina quitting Anirudh’s company Writers Galaxy and joining a channel. Would you believe that I was on my way from Goa for a shoot of ‘Salim Anarkali’ in December and I was told in the middle of my journey that the show is going off air? And wait till you hear this! Once I reached their office to ask for my dues, they had closed the lights and claimed they had no money to pay their electricity bills. I was an emotional fool and told them that I understand their problem but they should just make sure that eventually I am paid fully. After that, I have not gotten any response from them. I contacted them again when I contracted COVID, but even that failed to generate any response from Anirudh, imagine!”
In a conversation with BT, Gurdip also revealed that it is hard to understand Pathak, on one hand, he paints a picture of insolvency, but on the other, he has bought a swanky flat. “He is also involved in the upcoming show Bal Shiv as a sleeping partner. His new big flat is in Mumbai’s Lokhandwala, near Infinity Mall PVR multiplex” she added.
According to Gurdip Anirudh once texted her. “Pathak has been elusive on the phone- be it SMS, WhatsApp or call. However, once he sent me a message that said “Do whatever you want. You don’t know who you are talking to. I am Anirudh Pathak!”
While the actors are unable to register a complaint with the Police as such disputes are considered to be civil in nature, Anirudh is still dodging the media’s question by saying that he has said what he should have been.
