Vasan Bala, the director of Jigra, starring Bollywood stars Alia Bhatt and Vedang Raina, has found himself at the center of a storm after deactivating his X (formerly Twitter) account amid swirling controversy. This move comes after Jigra, released on October 11, bombed at the box office and sparked allegations of plagiarism, leaving Bala grappling with a barrage of criticism from all sides.Jigra’ Director Deletes X Account After Backlash Over Alia Bhatt’s New Film”
The highly anticipated film, co-produced by Bhatt’s Eternal Sunshine Productions and Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions, was expected to be a box-office hit. However, the film failed to impress, with critics calling it a flop and audience turnout proving dismal. Despite its emotional storyline, which focused on sibling relationships, Jigra didn’t resonate with viewers. The film’s financial underperformance quickly became a hot topic, but what truly sent the controversy into overdrive was an unexpected accusation.
Divya Khosla Kumar, wife of Bollywood mogul Bhushan Kumar of T-Series, added fuel to the fire by accusing the makers of Jigra—namely Alia Bhatt and Karan Johar—of rigging the box office numbers to cover up the movie’s failure. But that wasn’t all. In a shocking twist, she also accused Bala of copying her film Savi, which was released in May and bore a striking resemblance to Jigra. Kumar claimed that her crime thriller, a remake of the 2008 French film Anything for Her, shared many similarities with Bala’s film.
These accusations created a media frenzy, with social media users tearing into both Bala and the Jigra team. As tensions mounted, Vasan Bala tried to defend the film, stating in interviews that its failure came as a surprise to him. “You don’t set out to fail,” Bala said, adding that the film was meant to be emotionally universal and widely accessible. However, his defense didn’t sit well with online critics, who accused him of avoiding responsibility for the film’s poor performance.
The backlash grew stronger when Bala took to X to defend Alia Bhatt, intensifying the criticism from fans and industry insiders alike. Internet trolls flooded his timeline, making it clear that Bala’s words hadn’t helped ease the situation. Facing mounting pressure and an unrelenting wave of negativity, Bala decided to deactivate his X account. Now, when users attempt to visit his profile, they are met with the message, “This account doesn’t exist.”
The controversy has turned into a Bollywood showdown between two major camps—Alia Bhatt and Karan Johar on one side, and Divya Khosla Kumar and T-Series on the other. Divya’s bold accusations of box office manipulation and plagiarism have sparked an intriguing power struggle between these industry giants. The fact that Savi was co-produced by Alia Bhatt’s uncle Mukesh Bhatt and her husband Ranbir Kapoor’s T-Series has only added more complexity to this tangled web of professional and personal relationships.
As the dust continues to settle, questions remain about the future of Jigra and whether this controversy will lead to legal action. With Bala’s social media silence and Bhatt and Johar’s refusal to comment, the drama has left Bollywood fans eagerly watching for the next move in this escalating feud. Whether this will fizzle out or turn into a full-blown industry scandal remains to be seen, but for now, the battle lines in Bollywood have been drawn, and it’s anyone’s guess who will come out on top.
