Aamir Khan has issued a statement distancing himself from what appears to be the Gulshan Kumar biopic Mogul, which was being produced by his banner and T-Series and directed by Subhash Kapoor. The Jolly LLB director had been accused of attempting to rape actress Geetika Tyagi in 2012. Tyagi, who has been in the television series Powder, filed a case against Kapoor in 2014, and also released a video in which she can be seen slapping Kapoor in the presence of his wife.
Kapoor was arrested and released on bail following Tyagi’s complaint. Kapoor hasn’t been named in the statement, which was issued late on Wednesday night by Khan and his wife, Kiran Rao. “Two weeks ago, when traumatic #MeToo stories began emerging, it was brought to our attention that someone we were about to begin work with has been accused of sexual misconduct,” the statement read. “Upon enquiry we found that this particular case is subjudice, and that the legal process is in motion. We are not an investigative agency, nor are we in any position to pass judgement on anyone - that is for the police and judiciary to do. So, without casting any aspersions on anyone involved in this case, and without coming to any conclusions about these specific allegations, we have decided to step away from this film.”
Khan was committed to producing the biopic along with T-Series. There were reports that Khan was unhappy with the original screenplay, but returned to the project after the script was reworked.
Khan’s latest release is Thugs of Hindostan, which will be out on November 8.
Subhash Kapoor said he respected Khan’s decision. “Since matter is subjudice, I intend to prove my innocence in the court of law,” Kapoor told The Indian Express. “But I do want to raise a question – is secretly filming a crying woman without her consent and knowledge and uploading it on social media not harassment or abuse?”
T-Series head Bhushan Kumar told the newspaper that his company would not work with Kapoor. “With the on-going proceedings against the director that have been brought to our notice, everyone at T-Series has decided to not work with the director,” Kumar told The Indian Express.