Salman, Akshay, Katrina sued for $1mn for 'breach of contract'
An Indian-American promoter has taken top Bollywood stars including Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif and Akshay Kumar to court, seeking $1mn (Rs. 6.8cr) in damages. According to Vibrant Media Group, these actors along with Sonakshi Sinha and Ranveer Singh were paid thousands of dollars to perform in a 2013 Chicago event. The program was cancelled, but they never returned the money. Later, they refused to perform.
Here's what happened, according to Vibrant
Vibrant, which has also accused these stars' agents Matrix India Entertainment Consultants and Yashraj Films, says it had hired them for a concert on 'Celebrating 100 years of Indian Cinema', scheduled on September 1, 2013 at the Sears Center. But the show had to be cancelled due to ongoing legal proceedings against Salman Khan. Vibrant agreed to postpone it.
Actors refused to perform later, didn't return money either
The lawsuit claims Salman and the others refused to perform on another date or even to return the advance paid. They had also signed up to perform with another promoter, Vibrant alleges. Calls to these actors and their agents have remained unanswered, the group said, alleging "breach of contract." The lawsuit says Salman had been paid $200,000, Katrina $40,000 and Sonakshi $36,000.
The other stars named in the complaint
Apart from Salman, Katrina, Sonakshi, Akshay and Ranveer, the lawsuit by Vibrant also names dancer-choreographer Prabhu Deva and singers Usha Mangeshkar, Udit Narayan and Alka Yagnik in similar complaints. The case has now been assigned to District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman in Illinois.
