Television show MasterChef Telugu issued a statement against the non-payment claims of actor and the show’s host Tamannaah Bhatia and called them “false”. The production house also said that they have incurred a loss of Rs. 5 crores due to the actor’s busy schedule.
The show’s makers also said that they have approached the Bangalore Civil Court & Commercial Court regarding the same.
Recently, the actor’s lawyer had informed ETimes that she is being forced to take action against the production house backing MasterChef, Innovative Film Academy due to “non-payment of dues on MasterChef Telugu and unprofessional conduct”. ” “Due to the non-payment of dues on MasterChef Telugu and unprofessional conduct by the production house Innovative Film Academy, Tamannaah Bhatia is being forced to take legal action. Despite the continuous non-payment and unprofessional approach, she cancelled other commitments and was determined to complete the entire project. However, since the production house has overnight stopped communication with her, she is now forced to consider filing a legal suit against them, ” the actor’s lawyer had informed the publication.
Refuting these allegations, the production house in a statement issued on Wednesday said, “Abiding by the contract, IFA has paid Tamannah a total amount of Rs. 1.56 Crores for the sixteen days of the shoot that are done. The full shoot schedule was supposed to be completed between … June 24th and … September but it is still not finished, owing to her other commitments. Due to the enormous delay by the artist, this has resulted in a loss of more than Rs. 5 crores for the production house towards a huge standing cost of 300+ crew. The balance amount of Rs. 50 lakhs was supposed to be released, as per the agreement, after the completion of the two days of shoot for the finale which is still not shot. Despite Tamannah not furnishing her availability for the finale shoot, IFA has always maintained they will still pay her for those days once she comes and shoots the finale.”
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“At this juncture, Tamannah has demanded Advance Payment for Second Season association as well in order to complete the finale shoot of the first season, which is shocking to us as we have not prepared for it. As per the agreed terms, any difference should be dealt with by arbitration but Tamannah took it to the media recently. As a responsible organization we have taken the legal step on this subject and we shall keep you informed of the progress,” the statement further read.
Bhatia is yet to reply to the statement.
Meanwhile, the actor will next be seen in Maestro alongside Nithiin. The film is the official Telugu remake of the Hindi film Andhadhun. She also has a few other Telugu films in the pipeline, including the Gopichand-starrer Seetimaarr and Gurthunda Seethakalam, which is directed by Nagasekhar. She also has another Hindi film titled Plan A Plan B with Riteish Deshmukh upcoming.