Who is Vedika Prakash Shetty? Alia Bhatt's ex-PA arrested for allegedly forging actor's signature, 'stealing' ₹77 lakh

Alia Bhatt's former personal assistant, Vedika Prakash Shetty, was arrested for fraud after being accused of siphoning ₹77 lakh from the actor's accounts.

Published on: Jul 9, 2025, 09:12:43 IST

By Abhimanyu Mathur

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Actor Alia Bhatt's ex-personal assistant, Vedika Prakash Shetty, was arrested by the Juhu Police on Tuesday evening. Vedika has been accused of forgery and fraud, allegedly 'stealing an amount exceeding ₹76 lakh from the actor and her production house, Eternal Sunshine Productions Pvt Ltd. The former assistant was arrested from Bengaluru, nearly five months after a complaint was filed against her.

Alia Bhatt's former personal assistant Vedika Prakash Shetty was arrested for alleged fraud.

Alia Bhatt's ex-PA arrested for fraud

According to police sources, Vedika allegedly forged Alia's signature to siphon off funds from the production house's accounts to her own over a period of two years. As per a News 18 report, she has been accused of swindling an amount of ₹76,90,892 from Eternal Sunshine's funds as well as Alia's personal accounts between 2023 and 2025. A complaint was filed against Vedika Prakash Shetty by actor Soni Razdan, Alia's mother, in February, alleging financial misconduct. An FIR was registered and an investigation had been underway.

Police sources tell us that on Tuesday, a team of Mumbai Police tracked Vedika down to Bengaluru, from where she was arrested. The police are now scrutinising her bank accounts and financial records to get the full picture. Alia or her team has not issued a statement on the matter so far.

Who is Vedika Prakash Shetty?

Vedika Prakash Shetty had been associated with Alia as her personal assistant for a period of over two years, which ended last year. She was responsible for handling the actor's personal and business dealings, including overseeing the operations of her production house.

About Alia Bhatt's work

Eternal Sunshine Productions was founded by Alia in 2021. The company's first film was Darlings, the Netflix release that starred Alia, Shefali Shah, Vijay Varma, and Roshan Mathew.

Alia will be next seen in Alpha, a spy thriller from the Yash Raj Films' stable. Part of the YRF Spy Universe, the film also stars Sharvari in the lead and is slated to be released in theatres this December. The actor is also filming Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Love and War. She stars in the film alongside husband Ranbir Kapoor and Vicky Kaushal.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Abhimanyu Mathur
Abhimanyu Mathur is Deputy Editor, Entertainment at Hindustan Times. With almost 15 years of experience in writing about everything from films and TV shows to cricket matches and elections, he inhales and exhales pop culture and news. Currently, he watches movies and TV shows and talks to celebrities for a living, while occasionally writing about them as well. A journalism graduate of Delhi College of Arts and Commerce, Delhi University, Abhimanyu began his career with Hindustan Times at the age of 20, swapping classrooms for newsrooms at an early age. He began his journey in the early days of digital journalism, later switching to the madness of print journalism. Work has led him to far off places like Japan and Jordan, as well as to the interiors of Haryana and the Indo-Pak border. He dabbled in city reporting in places like Meerut, Gurgaon, and Delhi, covered the Olympics and Cricket World Cups, before finding his calling in entertainment and lifestyle during the pandemic. A Rotten Tomatoes Certified Film Critic, he is equally at home covering stories on ground as he is interviewing celebrities and studios, and sometimes prefers to shepherd teams in delivering traffic through the day. Even as his role has evolved from reporter to supervisor over the years, his first love remains writing (and of late, talking on camera). With a good understanding of cinema and its trends, and a keen eye for detail, he continues to spark conversations around showbiz for readers around the world.Read More

Alia Bhatt

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