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Producer Boney Kapoor has reacted to actor Arshad Warsi’s allegations that he was paid ₹25000 less for choreographing a song in the 1993 film Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja. Speaking with Bollywood Hungama, Boney said that Arshad Warsi “wasn’t a star” then, so “who would have paid him such a huge amount”. Arshad had earlier, in an interview, said that he quoted ₹1 lakh for choreographing the song and finished it in three days instead of four. (Also Read | Boney Kapoor called out once again for payment issues, Arshad Warsi reveals being paid less than discussed)
Boney reacts to Arshad’s claim
Boney said, “I read his statement, and I laughed. 1992 mein shoot kiya aur yeh abhi baat kar raha hai iske baare mein (The shoot took place in 1992 and he is talking about it now). At that time, he was not a star. Who would have paid him such a huge amount? It was Pankaj Parashar who directed the full title. It was divided into two parts. It was shot in James Bond style and a part of it was done in Singapore or Hong Kong. There were too many things happening and Tutu Sharma was handling the production.”
Boney credits Pankaj Parashar for completion of song sooner
He added, “We thought that it would take four days but Pankaj (Parashar) finished it in three days. I didn’t even remember this episode. He was paid ₹25,000 per day. Hence, he was paid ₹75,000 for three days. It was not like (he was promised a certain amount)…We were a part of a TV show together. Malaika Arora and Farah Khan were also a part of it. He never mentioned it and now, suddenly he talks about it. Everybody wants media attention now and I am a soft target.”
Pankaj Parashar reveals more details
Pankaj Parashar told Bollywood Hungama that it was him who completed the song in three days. He added that he was “the director while he was a newcomer choreographer”. Pankaj added that Arshad “didn’t control the shoot” but he did.
What Arshad had claimed
Speaking on Unfiltered by Samdish, Arshad said he was paid ₹75,000 instead of ₹1 lakh, the amount that he had discussed with the film’s team. Boney Kapoor’s production Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja starred Anil Kapoor and Sridevi.
He had said, “The production person asked me to finish the song sooner, because shooting for four days would increase costs. I told him I’ll try my best, and we worked very hard to get the song done, but we finished in three days. I thought that the production would be happy. I went to get my cheque, and they gave me ₹75,000. I said, ‘I just saved you an entire day’s shoot, you should pay me more.’ He said, ‘No, for four days it’s ₹1 lakh, and for three days it’s ₹75,000’.”
