Udaipur Police Arrest Filmmaker Vikram Bhatt in ₹30 Crore Fraud Case

Udaipur police on Sunday arrested popular filmmaker Vikram Bhatt and his wife Shwetambari Bhatt from Mumbai in connection with a ₹30 crore film production fraud case. According to officials, the couple, along with six others, are accused of cheating Dr. Ajay Murdia, founder of Indira Group of Companies, based in Udaipur.

Police said Dr. Murdia, who runs businesses related to female infertility across India, had approached the Bhatts to produce a biopic on his late wife, with promised earnings of ₹200 crore. However, nothing materialized, prompting him to register an FIR at Bhopalpura police station for cheating and other offenses.

Preliminary investigations revealed that Dr. Murdia was introduced to the accused by an acquaintance. In May 2024, an agreement was signed between Murdia and the Bhatts for the production of four films, including the biopic, with a total deal value of ₹47 crore. While the first two films were reportedly completed, the remaining projects were never made.

Udaipur police said the accused allegedly prepared fake documents, including bills from fictitious vendors, to siphon off funds from the complainant. The accused inflated vouchers and salary bills to justify the money and illegally transferred around ₹30 crore.

Following their arrest in Mumbai, the Rajasthan police sought a two-day transit remand to bring the couple to Udaipur for further interrogation and legal proceedings. The couple’s lawyers claimed that the police forced them to sign documents without specifying the date and time and threatened them with torture if they did not comply.

The court granted transit remand for the couple until December 9. The case has triggered widespread attention, highlighting one of the biggest alleged frauds in the Indian film industry in recent times.