Aryan Khan is basking in the success of his directorial debut The Ba***ds of Bollywood. The series brims with digs at various aspects of the film industry. In an unfortunate turn of events, Sameer Wankhede had filed a lawsuit against series. Now, the Delhi High Court on Wednesday issued notice to actor Shah Rukh Khan, Red Chillies Entertainment and Netflix on a defamation suit filed by IRS officer Sameer Wankhede for allegedly maligning his reputation in their series.
Delhi HC issues summons
Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav issued summons to defendants — Gauri Khan owned Red Chillies Entertainment Private Limited, Netflix, X Corp (formerly Twitter), Google LLC, Meta Platforms, RPG Lifestyle Media Private Limited and John Doe — on the defamation suit and asked them to file their replies within seven days.
The court listed the matter for further hearing on October 30. The court, which did not pass any interim injunction order at this stage, asked the defendants to also file their replies on Wankhede`s application seeking to take down the alleged defamatory content from several websites.
Wankhede sought Rs 2 crore in damages which he wants to be donated to the Tata Memorial Cancer Hospital for cancer patients. “This series disseminates a misleading and negative portrayal of anti-drug enforcement agencies, thereby eroding public confidence in law enforcement institutions,” the plea submitted.
The plea said the series has been deliberately conceptualised and executed with the intent to malign Wankhede`s reputation in a colourable and prejudicial manner, especially when the case involving the officer and Shahrukh Khan`s son Aryan khan is pending and sub-judice before the Bombay High Court and the NDPS Special Court in Mumbai.
Why Sameer Wankhede filed a defamation suit?
The petition raised concerns about a scene in the show where a narcotics officer arrives at a party to nab people caught taking drugs. In that moment, a character is shown making an obscene gesture, raising the middle finger towards him, immediately after the officer says the national slogan “Satyamev Jayate,” which is part of India’s National Emblem. For the unversed, Sameer Wankhede had arrested Aryan Khan in the 2021 cruise drug case. Aryan was later given a clean chit.
Talking about the series, it stars Lakshya, Sahher Bambba, Bobby Deol, Gautami Kapoor, Mona Singh, Anya Singh, Raghav Juyal and Rajat Bedi among others in pivotal roles.
