Even before the ongoing wave of celebrating Murder 2 in Bhatt camp could recede Mahesh Bhatt and his banner Vishesh Films courted a controversy. Model-actor Pinki Gaur is all set to sue him for using her photograph without her prior consent. Pinki, who has featured in shows like Dil Dosti Dance, Karam Apna Apna recalls being informed about her photograph being used in Murder 2.
“There’s a scene, where an agent is talking about supplying prostitutes and showing pictures of a number of girls. One of the snaps he shows is mine, and he says that she’s gone out on work,” says Pinki, adding that she was astonished as she had never given any of her photographs to Vishesh Films.
However, through a friend who works with Mukesh and Mahesh Bhatt’s company, she learnt that they had obtained permission from a model coordinator who had given them her photographs.
Pinki avers that there should have been an agreement with her. “How can they use my photograph in their movie just like that?” she wonders, maintaining that, “There was no contract, nothing at all. Just using my photograph for a scene like that is not acceptable to me.”
She further says that while it may not matter to the producers, her snap featuring in a scene where a character is showing photographs of prostitutes could affect her career.
Pinki concedes that her friend suggested she send the notice to Vishesh Films, which she’s doing today. “If they don’t reply, then I can file an FIR against them for using my photograph like this,” asserts the model-actor.
While Mahesh Bhatt says, “If you’ve seen the film, you’ll understand that it’s not our intention to malign, demean or tarnish the image of the people whose photographs feature along with that of Yana Gupta, on whom the scene zeroes on.”
He conceded that a trainee in charge of putting the props for the particular scene might have goofed up. “Instead of getting the images cleared by the department seniors, the trainee bungled up, maybe out of sheer oversight or lethargy,” he admitted.
Bhatt further reasoned that going the legal way could in turn be a cause of hardship for the girl concerned, so he’d rather resolve the issue arbitrarily.
“If the lady wants a graceful apology from Vishesh Films, I’ve no problems with that,” he stated, adding that nothing would come out from her going to court. “Because our courts are already burned with far more important cases. So it’s best to resolve it arbitrarily.”
( Courtesy: Mid Day)
