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Time of India

Bengali filmmaker Shyam Sunder Dey and wife Malabika accuse TV couple Puja Banerjee and Kunal Verma of kidnapping and extortion

Days after Puja Banerjee and Kunal Verma spoke about falling prey to a financial scam, Bengali Film producer, Shyam Sunder Dey accused them of kidnapping, detaining him in Goa, and extorting lakhs from him. Malabika, Dey's wife has now filed a complaint with the police, and the two actors have been charged. While speaking to Times of India, Dey made a revelation that he was kidnapped during his family vacation in Goa, he said, "My family stayed with me for about five days. They returned home for my child's education purpose, and I decided to stay on to attend to some business matters,' he said. While driving a rented car— Shyam alleged that a black Jaguar intercepted his vehicle on the main road. 'It came out of nowhere and forced me to a halt. Two men got down, approached me, and insisted I step out, all of it I assume will be there in CCTV. At first, I refused. But then I noticed Puja Banerjee — who has been like a sister to me — was present. Seeing her, I let my guard down, thinking this must be a misunderstanding," Shyam shared. According to Dey, he was first taken to a friend's house and then shifted to a villa. "They made me sit in their car and took me to Amber Villa. Initially, I was kept on the first floor, but because it was too close to the road and they feared attention, I was shifted upstairs." Shyam further shared that Kunal had beaten him and Puja was watching them despite him pleading, "I stayed at the villa from the 1st to the 4th of June. I wasn't allowed to leave. Every day I tried to reason with Puja and Kunal — I reminded them we were like family and pleaded with them to stop. But all I faced were threats. I told her, your husband is beating me, fine. But other men are thrashing me in front of you, and you're silent? How can this be right?" Further in a post, Malabika detailed their ordeal, Shyam was abducted and locked up at Amber Villa for four days. He was abused, recorded under duress, and threatened with false implication in a narcotics case if he did not pay ₹64 lakh. Under pressure, he sent ₹23 lakh, including payments to Puja's assistant in Kolkata and RTGS transactions to her and Kunal's accounts. According to Malabika's post, the occurrence was more than just a crime; it was a terrible betrayal that inflicted irreversible mental and psychological suffering. We're looking for justice and advising others to be wary about the company they keep." Malabika shared all the documents including the bank transfers, Whatsapp chats and even the complaint reports and emails. Shyam Sunder added, "I am not saying that the money they demanded was compensation for the abduction. Yes, we had professional transactions. But no business loss, no due payment can justify this kind of madness. Abduction or kidnapping can never be a fair or lawful way to settle anything. There is no excuse for what happened. "