Actor Divya Khossla has sparked a heated debate with her Insta Story criticising Alia Bhatt’s latest release Jigra and publicly clashing with co-producer Karan Johar, who responded to her allegations by posting: “Silence is the best speech you will ever give to fools” on his social media. To which, Khossla quickly retaliated with another Story: “Truth will always offend fools opposed to it.”
We speak to Khossla exclusively to learn more.
WAR OF WORDS WITH KJO
“Today, when I speak up, Mr Karan Johar uses derogatory language to shut me down. Is it right to call a woman a fool for pointing out unethical practices? If this happens to me, what about those new to the industry? No one is a king here, and I won’t be treated like a subject. There are many more derogatory words which were used in their PR articles, and called my taking a stand as a PR stunt. I'm sorry, I don't need one. I'm already well known,” she says.
ON ALIA BHATT AND UNETHICAL PRACTICES
Khossla’s initial post targeted actor Alia Bhatt for allegedly benefiting from “fake ticket bookings”. She says, “Alia doesn’t need to resort to such tactics; she’s already well-established. But true heroism is in speaking against wrongdoing. Let the audience decide based on merit, not money and power.”
{{/usCountry}}Khossla’s initial post targeted actor Alia Bhatt for allegedly benefiting from “fake ticket bookings”. She says, “Alia doesn’t need to resort to such tactics; she’s already well-established. But true heroism is in speaking against wrongdoing. Let the audience decide based on merit, not money and power.”
{{/usCountry}}Khossla highlighted her concern with corporate bookings and manipulated box office numbers: “After Covid, smaller production houses have shut down, and only those with money survive. I saw an empty theatre, yet Jigra’s opening figures were inflated. That needs serious correction." She claims that false numbers are put out for certain films. “We are creative people, we are not in a share market, and by giving fake box office numbers, certain media persons also highlight bad films. When good films work, no one talks about that. These people decide which film is will be declared a hit- as tickets are bought and fake collections are announced. And that's why only those people will be able to survive here, who have money. New talent, will never be able to enter.”
JIGRA AND SAVI: SIMILAR STORIES
Khossla claims “Jigra is a copy” of her film Savi, a jailbreak story. Savi, which released earlier this year, was based on The Next Three Days (2010), for which her team bought the rights.
She notes that “both films share the same story line”, but her project “was in production first”. Savi was a jailbreak story about a wife who is out to rescue her husband, jailed in a high-security prison. She is helped by Anil Kapoor's character. Jigra too is a jailbreak story, where a sister sets out to rescue her brother who will soon be executed, from a prison. She is helped by two people along the way. The treatment of both the stories is different.
MUKESH BHATT CONNECTION
Both Savi and Jigra share a common link — Mukesh Bhatt, Alia’s uncle, who co-produced Savi. When asked if she discussed the similarities with him, Khossla confirms, “Yes, this was clearly discussed with him, but I don't want to bring him into the picture because he's got family ties and he's 72. I have a deep and respectful relationship with him. But yes, the topic was discussed with him numerous times while shooting the film."