Hyderabad police has registered a cheating case against filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma, a police official from the Miyapur Police Station, where the complaint has been registered, confirmed to Silverscreen India.
The filmmaker had allegedly cheated an individual from a production house after borrowing Rs 56 lakh from them, and subsequently, had not returned the amount.
Speaking to us, the official mentioned, “The complaint has been lodged by an individual named Koppada Sekhar Raju, who is the proprietor of Sekhara Art Creations. In his petition, he has stated that initially, he had first lent Rs 8 lakh to director Ram Gopal Varma, and later on, Rs 20 lakh back in 2020. After that, while he was making his film Disha Encounter, Ram Gopal Varma had persuaded him to invest an additional amount of Rs 28 lakh, and also said that he will be credited as a co-producer for the film. In total, Varma borrowed Rs 56 lakh, and an agreement was set that the money will be returned to the petitioner, once Disha Encounter is released.”
The official further noted that Sekhar Raju claimed that Varma has not returned his money as yet, and said that the director had “threatened” him over a phone call. “So, he (Sekhar Raju) approached the Honourable Court, and as per the directions, a case has been registered against Ram Gopal Varma,” he added, and said that an investigation is currently underway.
Additionally, a case has been filed against Varma, under sections 406 (punishment for criminal breach of trust), 417 (punishment for cheating), 420 (cheating), and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.
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Earlier, Varma’s film Disha Encounter, which is based on the gang rape and murder of Hyderabad-based veterinarian Disha, ran into problems as the family members of the deceased victim staged a protest and demanded a ban on the film. They claimed that there were several similarities between the trailer of Varma’s film and the actual incident that took place.
However, the official did not comment on the status of the film.