Bollywood actor Mallika Sherawat and a companion were attacked with tear gas and beaten in Paris on November 11, reports said on Friday. Sherawat and her companion, French businessman Cyrille Auxenfans, were assaulted when the two arrived at Auxenfans’ residential apartment in the 16th arrondissement of the French capital, The Telegraph reported.

Local reports said the attackers wore scarves across their faces. The attackers first sprayed Sherawat and Auxenfans with tear gas before they punched them. However, they fled, after which the two called emergency services.

A criminal inquiry was initiated into the incident, IANS reported. Investigators were working on the assumption that the attack was an attempted robbery. An official from the Paris prosecutor’s office said the two had inhaled tear gas fumes and suffered minor injuries. They also refused to see a doctor, the official said.

Sherawat, who is also a model, has acted in Bollywood and international movies like Ugly Aur Pagli and The Myth with Jackie Chan.