logo
Dharma Productions issues statement after sexual misconduct allegations against ‘Homebound' cinematographer Pratik Shah

Dharma Productions issues statement after sexual misconduct allegations against ‘Homebound' cinematographer Pratik Shah

The Hindu2 days ago

A day after sexual misconduct allegations surfaced against Homebound cinematographer Pratik Shah, production banner Dharma Productions issued a statement, distancing itself from the controversy and reasserting its stance against sexual harassment at the workplace.
Shah, who recently attended the Cannes premiere of Homebound, has been accused of predatory and inappropriate behaviour towards multiple women. He was outed online in a post by filmmaker Abhinav Singh, who has based his claims on testimonials of around 20 women.
Homebound, shot by Shah, is directed by Neeraj Ghaywan (Masaan) and produced by Dharma Productions. A story of friendship and resilience, the film stars Ishaan Khatter, Vishal Jethwa and Janhvi Kapoor.
The Karan Johar-led banner said in it's statement, 'At Dharma Productions we have a zero tolerance policy against inappropriate behaviour and sexual harassment towards any individual working with us in any capacity, and we treat sexual harassment cases very seriously.
The POSH-mandated Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) at Dharma did not receive any complaints against Shah during his association on Homebound, the statement said.
'Mr. Pratik Shah was a freenlancer on the project Homebound and was working on it for a limited period. His engagement with us has been completed. During this limited period our internal committee for POSH didn't receive any complaints against him from any cast or crew on our film 'Homebound',' the statement read.
ALSO READ: Interview | Basharat Peer on the story that became 'Homebound'
Besides Homebound, Pratik Shah has shot CTRL, Jubilee and other titles. According to a report in THR India, four years ago, a young female cinematographer had approached the Indian Women Cinematographers' Collective (IWCC) with a complaint against Shah after he solicited a nude picture. The publication also accessed the testimonials corroborating Abhinav Singh's claims. The women reached to Singh with accounts of Shah's 'creepy' behaviour, with some labelling him a 'predator'.
Shah has not responded to the allegations. He has deactivated his Instagram account since May 30, 2025 (Friday).

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Special place for Deccan Queen among Punekars as commuters celebrate train's birthday
Special place for Deccan Queen among Punekars as commuters celebrate train's birthday

Indian Express

time9 hours ago

  • Indian Express

Special place for Deccan Queen among Punekars as commuters celebrate train's birthday

COMMUTERS and die-hard fans of the Deccan Queen, the express train which runs between Pune and Mumbai, celebrated its birthday in style on platform number one at Pune Railway station. The celebrations were held from as early as 6.30 in the morning. The Deccan Queen on June 1, 2025 completed 95 years and entered its 96th year. The train was started on June 1, 1930. The train, in all these years, had only one major mishap in 1990, when a few bogies had jumped tracks at Khandala Ghat. 'In the initial years, it had seven coaches… Now it has 16 coaches. It is one of the oldest trains being run in the country. It always leaves on time and is therefore highly popular among commuters, especially office-goers and businessmen and women,' said Harsha Shah, president of the Railway Pravasi Group, which every year takes the initiative to celebrate the train's birthday. The train leaves Pune railway station at 7.10 in the morning and reaches Mumbai at 10.40 am. And it was no different on Sunday as loyal passengers who have regularly travelled to Mumbai from Pune for years and fans of the train gathered ahead of the train's leaving for Mumbai at Pune Railway Station. They decorated the train with festoons and ribbon. The train was garlanded as well. As the crowd swelled and cellphones captured the enthusiastic moment, a cake was cut in the presence of Railway officials, activists and commuters. Some commuters even broke into an impromptu jig as the band in attendance spiked their tempo. Shah said she was just five years old when she first travelled with her uncle to Mumbai. 'And since then, for decades now, I have always preferred the Deccan Queen or Dakkhan Ki Rani to travel to Mumbai. The train has a dinning car with table service which very few in the country boast of… The passengers who regularly travel have formed a special bond among themselves,' she said. Speaking about the mishap in 1990, Shah said, 'Deccan Queen has been the safest train for commuters. I do not remember any major mishap with the train except in 1990 when some 10 bogies had jumped track in Khandala Ghat following heavy rain. There were no casualties,' she said. 'I am a fan of Deccan Queen…It is my favourite train,' said another commuter. Shah said commuters who travel by Deccan Queen consider it as part of their family. 'The passengers have a special place for Deccan Queen in their hearts,' she said. Shah said the enthusiasm among commuters and fans in celebrating the birthday of the train remained intact. 'They all turn up on their own. Each one it seems waits to celebrate the birthday of their Deccan Queen,' she said. Manoj More has been working with the Indian Express since 1992. For the first 16 years, he worked on the desk, edited stories, made pages, wrote special stories and handled The Indian Express edition. In 31 years of his career, he has regularly written stories on a range of topics, primarily on civic issues like state of roads, choked drains, garbage problems, inadequate transport facilities and the like. He has also written aggressively on local gondaism. He has primarily written civic stories from Pimpri-Chinchwad, Khadki, Maval and some parts of Pune. He has also covered stories from Kolhapur, Satara, Solapur, Sangli, Ahmednagar and Latur. He has had maximum impact stories from Pimpri-Chinchwad industrial city which he has covered extensively for the last three decades. Manoj More has written over 20,000 stories. 10,000 of which are byline stories. Most of the stories pertain to civic issues and political ones. The biggest achievement of his career is getting a nearly two kilometre road done on Pune-Mumbai highway in Khadki in 2006. He wrote stories on the state of roads since 1997. In 10 years, nearly 200 two-wheeler riders had died in accidents due to the pathetic state of the road. The local cantonment board could not get the road redone as it lacked funds. The then PMC commissioner Pravin Pardeshi took the initiative, went out of his way and made the Khadki road by spending Rs 23 crore from JNNURM Funds. In the next 10 years after the road was made by the PMC, less than 10 citizens had died, effectively saving more than 100 lives. Manoj More's campaign against tree cutting on Pune-Mumbai highway in 1999 and Pune-Nashik highway in 2004 saved 2000 trees. During Covid, over 50 doctors were asked to pay Rs 30 lakh each for getting a job with PCMC. The PCMC administration alerted Manoj More who did a story on the subject, asking then corporators how much money they story worked as doctors got the job without paying a single paisa. Manoj More has also covered the "Latur drought" situation in 2015 when a "Latur water train" created quite a buzz in Maharashtra. He also covered the Malin tragedy where over 150 villagers had died. Manoj More is on Facebook with 4.9k followers (Manoj More), on twitter manojmore91982 ... Read More

Pankaj Tripathi Initially Refused Mimi, Says Wife Convinced Him To Take The Role
Pankaj Tripathi Initially Refused Mimi, Says Wife Convinced Him To Take The Role

News18

time15 hours ago

  • News18

Pankaj Tripathi Initially Refused Mimi, Says Wife Convinced Him To Take The Role

Last Updated: Pankaj Tripathi reveals he initially turned down Mimi until his wife convinced him to reconsider. The role went on to earn him a National Award. With the return of the much-anticipated fourth season of Criminal Justice, actor Pankaj Tripathi once again steps into the role of Madhav Mishra, the endearing and sharp-witted lawyer navigating complex cases in the Indian judicial system. As the series premieres on OTT, Tripathi appeared in IMDb's exclusive segment 'The Essential Guide,' offering audiences a rare window into the key moments that shaped his career, the stories behind his most iconic performances, and what he sees as the pillars of his evolution in the digital entertainment space. Reflecting on his time filming Raavan, Tripathi revealed, 'I enjoyed my feminine side while shooting for Raavan. During the filming, I wore a saree, with makeup, and sat on set for seven days. Even in my village, I had dressed up as a girl for the first play in my life. I haven't had the opportunity to play a character like that on screen again, but if it comes, the opportunity would be interesting." He also shared a deeply personal story about a photo with his parents. 'In villages, there is no such culture of taking pictures. I had a mobile back then and requested a child nearby to click a picture of me with my parents. It was the first opportunity in my life when I got to place my hand on my father's shoulder, as such acts weren't followed in my village. In my house, no one knew what films were. No one used to read film magazines either and in fact there was no electricity there till 2016-17. I had told my family that I'm going to study theatre at NSD, post which I will become a professor. They thought I would get into teaching post my education there, so they agreed to let me go." Speaking about how the industry came to acknowledge his versatility, Tripathi said, 'Neeraj Ghaywan helped me change my image from an aggressive man which I had got through Gangs of Wasseypur. People were surprised through Masaan that I can play a soft character as well. Both films – Gangs of Wasseypur and Masaan helped the industry realise that I am a versatile actor. Then Nil Battey Sannata helped the industry understand that I can even play a comic role too. I played a sincere school principal who wanted to help students move ahead in life. The film is a serious comedy. It was Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari's first film. She gave me the freedom to play the character the way I want and thus people got acquainted with the fact that I can do comedy as well." Tripathi also recalled the moment he learned he had won a National Award for his work in Newton. 'I had a lot of fun filming Newton. Though I was fed up with lower back pain that I was dealing with at the time. Under the uniform I wore, I used to wear an orthopedic belt and kept it on during the entire filming. The film gave me my first National Award. I'll always be thankful and cherish that. I was with Saurabh Shukla and Anubhav Sinha, we were shooting in Lucknow. Saurabh sir then checked his phone and pointed it towards me saying that I won a National Award. I thought he was joking initially as we weren't aware that the announcement was that day. I went running to my room as I didn't have my phone. When I reached, there were around 30-35 missed calls. Some media folks, some from the fraternity. It was an emotional moment and I shed a few tears. I called my wife and informed her. It was always my dream to win a National Award for cinema, I was emotional for a few days thereafter." Looking back on Bareilly Ki Barfi, Tripathi shared, 'I was quite fit then, so I had to wear a bodysuit under a sweater to look heavier. Many girls approached me after the film sharing that they made their fathers watch it and through the movie, their equation with them changed." He also reflected on the characters that shaped his digital career. 'Guruji in Sacred Games, Kaleen Bhaiya in Mirzapur and Madhav Mishra in Criminal Justice. While acting, I feel that I should just keep thinking and it should transform into an expression that defines the character." Finally, speaking about Mimi, a film he initially declined, Tripathi said, 'I initially didn't want to do Mimi. Dinesh Vijan and Laxman Utekar called my wife, asking her to convince me. I gave in and did the film. It was a great experience to be a part of this movie that is amongst the most viewed films on OTT. Kriti and I both received National Awards for the film. It wasn't just a supporting role, it was something else altogether." As Madhav Mishra returns to our screens in Criminal Justice: Season 4, Tripathi's journey from village plays to national acclaim stands as a testament to perseverance, range, and the quiet power of letting characters speak for themselves. His stories not only reflect his humility and depth as an artist, but also highlight the subtle, transformative power of authenticity in Indian cinema. First Published:

Ajay Devgn's Hilarious Birthday Wish For R Madhavan Goes Viral: ‘Looks Serious Hai…'
Ajay Devgn's Hilarious Birthday Wish For R Madhavan Goes Viral: ‘Looks Serious Hai…'

News18

time16 hours ago

  • News18

Ajay Devgn's Hilarious Birthday Wish For R Madhavan Goes Viral: ‘Looks Serious Hai…'

Last Updated: In 2025, Madhavan took on the complex role of Neville McKinley in Kesari Chapter 2 and is all set to portray the visionary G.D. Naidu Ajay Devgn and R Madhavan share a close bond and were seen working in the horror film Shaitaan. Today, as the actor turns a year older. Ajay Devgn took to his Instagram handle to wish him. He dropped a photo of the duo in an intense-looking pose Ajay wrote, 'Look serious hai lekin dimaag mein sirf shaitaani chal rahi hai. Happy Birthday bro @actormaddy." Kajol also expressed a playful birthday wish to her Shaitaan actor R Madhavan. The Maa actress wrote, 'Shaitaan is getting older, wiser and sneakier, happy birthday @actormaddy." The affectionate jest references Madhavan's role as the antagonist in the 2024 supernatural thriller Shaitaan, where he portrayed a sinister sorcerer. The film, co-starring Ajay Devgn and Jyothika, was a commercial success and has since spawned a shared cinematic universe. R Madhavan has collaborated with Fatima Sana Shaikh for the romance drama, Aap Jaisa Koi, that follows the lives of two distinct persons, Shrirenu Tripathi and Madhu Bose. According to the teaser, Madhavan plays a Sanskrit teacher and Fatima a French professor. The movie is directed by Vivek Soni and produced by Karan Johar's Dharma Productions. Meanwhile, his surprise appearance at Kajol starrer Maa's trailer launch in Mumbai led to speculation that he might be a part of the film. Maa is reportedly set in the same universe as Shaitaan. However, details about his role remain under wraps. In 2024, he portrayed a compelling character in The Railwaymen, further expanding his range and proving his ability to bring complex stories to life. In 2025, Madhavan took on the complex role of Neville McKinley in Kesari Chapter 2 and is all set to portray the visionary G.D. Naidu-'The Edison of India", in an upcoming biopic. His recent OTT hit Hisaab Barabar has also garnered a loyal fanbase, further cementing his status as a versatile star of the streaming era. Madhavan's journey in cinema is more than a milestone; it's a testament to his passion, fearless choices, and enduring connection with audiences. From romantic classics to bold, experimental dramas, he has consistently evolved, inspiring generations. Up next, he'll be seen in the much-awaited Aap Jaisa Koi, further proving that R. Madhavan's star power remains as dynamic and impactful as ever. First Published: June 01, 2025, 16:53 IST

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store