As per reports in a tabloid, 'Queen' director Vikas Bahl, who was accused of sexual misconduct in 2018 during #MeToo movement in India has been cleared of all charges. He will be credited as the director of Hrithik Roshan's upcoming film, 'Super 30'.
Immediately after #MeToo movement hit India, Queen director Vikas Bahl was one of the first few people, who was accused of sexual misconduct. He was first reportedly accused of harassment by an assistant of Anurag Kashyap during a party of Bombay Velvet (2015). After the whole episode came out in public, it led to the dissolution of Phantom Films of which the founding partners were Anurag Kashyap, Vikas, Madhu Mantena and Vikramaditya Motwane along with Reliance Entertainment.
After being accused, Vikas was also ousted from Hrithik Roshan starrer Super 30 which he directed. Hrithik had also tweeted, "It is impossible for me to work with any person if he/she is guilty of such grave misconduct. I am away and have access to only sporadic information. I have requested the producers of Super 30 to take stock of the apparent facts and take a harsh stand if need be. This is not to be hushed or brushed under the carpet. All proven offenders must be punished, and all exploited people must be empowered and given strength to speak up."
— Hrithik Roshan (@iHrithik) October 8, 2018
Now after almost seven months, Vikas has been cleared of all charges which were followed by an internal inquiry set by Reliance Entertainment.
1. To return as the director of 'Super 30'
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As per reports in Mumbai Mirror, after being cleared of all charges, it has led to Vikas Bahl returning as the director of Super 30 starring Hrithik Roshan in the lead role, and his name will be shown in the credits when the trailer will be unveiled in the coming week.
Moreover, after he was accused by his fellow partners from Phantom Films, Vikas had filed a defamation case against Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane for their statements on his reported sexual misconduct.
2. Committee clears Vikas of all charges
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When the tabloid quizzed Shibasish Sarkar, the Group CEO of Reliance Entertainment, he confirmed the report and stated, "Yes, it is true that the internal complaints committee report has exonerated Vikas Bahl. With the committee clearing Vikas, we don’t have a choice but to reinstate his credit as director of Super 30."
3. Complainant did not appear before the committee
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While a source also said that the 'complainant did not appear before Reliance Entertainment’s internal complaints committee' despite repeated reminders.
The source added, "Those associated with the complainant and the respondent were interviewed by the committee. It also recorded documentation and correspondence between the two and based on this, it has unanimously concluded that Vikas Bahl stands exonerated of all charges levelled against him."
4. Phantom Films never got a formal complaint from the complainant!
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As per the tabloid, Vikas also wrote to Reliance Entertainment to launch an investigation as Phantom Films never got a formal complaint from the accuser. The source concluded by saying, "The woman said the incident took place in 2015 - the same year that the Reliance-Phantom merger happened. Over the next two years, till April 20, 2017, Reliance did not receive any complaint nor did it have an idea of any such alleged incident. The company always had an internal complaints committee to deal with such issues but no compliant was registered with it either."
(Inputs from Mumbai Mirror)
(All photos via Ashwini Sawant/DNA Research & Archives)
