The timing couldn't be more awkward. Vashu Bhagnani, the man who built Pooja Entertainment into a powerhouse of 90s and 2000s Bollywood, is currently lying in a London hospital. ANI reports the hospitalisation, though the medical specifics remain tight-lipped. It’s a stark contrast to the chaos unfolding back in Mumbai, where investigators are still sifting through the wreckage of a nine-figure financial probe.
The raid hit hard on September 28. Mumbai’s Income Tax Department swept through 12 locations connected to Bhagnani, his daughter-in-law Rakul Preet Singh, and Panorama Studios. The core allegation is straightforward and serious: funds allegedly routed abroad under the smokescreen of film financing. Multiple teams are now verifying every ledger and wire transfer, looking for the trail that leads out of India.
This isn’t the only legal storm cloud hanging over the family. Just last December, the EAGLE force was out in force hunting Aman Preet Singh, Rakul’s brother. They seized 43 grams of cocaine and 11.5 grams of MDMA from two peddlers, linking Aman to five separate purchases. It’s a messy web of legal trouble that has now expanded to the top brass of the industry.
Bhagnani’s career has been a long run. From the Govinda era’s Coolie No. 1 in 1995 to backing Akshay Kumar’s Bade Miyan Chote Miyan in 2024, he’s been a constant. Films like Hero No. 1 and Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein defined an era. But in this business, the lights can go out as fast as they turn on. As the IT teams finish their document review in Mumbai, the question now shifts to London: is this stress-induced, or a premeditated flight? The next few weeks will tell.