Ram Gopal Varma has revealed how Salman Khan’s film Chori Chori Chupke Chupke got linked to the Mumbai underworld. The filmmaker shared details of the controversy during a conversation, bringing back one
of Bollywood’s most talked-about off-screen stories. How The Film Began Speaking to crime author Hussain S Zaidi on his podcast, Ram Gopal Varma recalled how the project started. “At a point of time, he (Bharat Shah) got a guy who told him he has Salman Khan’s dates. So, he said, ‘Okay, cool.’ But since that guy didn’t have a film background and wasn’t even rich, Bharat bhai called Salman,” Varma said. “Salman told him, ‘Yes, I’ve given him dates.’ That reassured Bharat bhai enough for him to give the money and the film Chori Chori Chupke Chupke started,” he added. At the time, Bharat Shah believed everything was legitimate. Underworld Links Surface According to Varma, things changed later when Bharat Shah found out about producer Nazim Rizvi’s alleged links. “After some time, he got to know the producer, Nazim Rizvi, has some connection with Chhota Shakeel. But he thought he’s doing a legal business, and if the producer has some underworld connection, how does that concern him? He’s himself not even a criminal, but just associated with a criminal,” Varma said. The situation became more complicated when a businessman received an extortion call from the underworld. Extortion And Fallout RGV shared that a businessman from the industry was asked to pay Rs 5 crore. He approached Bharat Shah for help, hoping Rizvi’s alleged connections could resolve the issue. When the call reached Chhota Shakeel, the amount was reportedly reduced to Rs 2 crore. Following this, more people from the film industry began approaching Bharat Shah for help. However, this also drew police attention. “But he wasn’t getting any money. He was just helping out. But the cops were tapping his phone,” Varma said. He added, “He was trembling with shock and fear. The cops suggested maybe Shakeel was acting for you. So, Bharat bhai said, ‘Why would he act for me? I’m just a filmmaker.’” Arrests And Case In 2001, both Bharat Shah and Nazim Rizvi were arrested by Mumbai Police. Bharat Shah was convicted for not disclosing the producer’s underworld links and sentenced to one year in jail. Nazim Rizvi and his partner Abdul Rahim Allahbaksh Khan were convicted for underworld links and extortion. They were fined Rs 15 lakh each and sentenced to six years in jail. Bharat Shah’s Role In Bollywood Bharat Shah was a major financier in the film industry at the time. He backed projects for top banners including Yash Raj Films, Dharma Productions and Shah Rukh Khan’s Dreamz Unlimited. He was also associated with films like Darr, Yes Boss, Dil Se.., Pukar, Devdas and Main Hoon Na.
