Reality bites Salil Ankola

Big Boss will lose one of its stars. Cricketer-turned-actor Salil Ankola will be missing from the reality show on Sony Entertainment Television (SET) following a Bombay High Court order on Wednesday that ordered him not to participate in programmes for any production house which is a rival to Balalji Telefilms.

Ankola’s troubles began after Balalji Telefilms dragged him to the high court. According to a contractual agreement between Ankola and Balalji Telefilms in June 2006, the actor had submitted, in writing, that he would not act in any television show on any channel apart from those produced by Balaji Films. Under the terms and conditions of the agreement, he was not allowed to act in programs or television serials made by any other production house or channel that “directly or indirectly compete with Balaji Telefilms”.

Ankola had signed the contract after taking up a role in the Balaji Telefilms production, Karam Apna Apna. It was first aired on August 29 on Star TV and the actor was expected to abide by the contract for the next 12 months. However, he shot through the 20-day-a-month schedule of the serial in August and September but did not show up in October. It was then that Balaji moved the court. Justice DK Deshmukh ordered that until the arbitration in the agreement is pending, the actor cannot act, endorse, advertise or do voice overs for programmes produced by production houses that compete with Balaji.