TV actor Siddharth Arora who was last seen in show Laado 2, has claimed that he did not receive the payment of his dues from the show's producer. He further mentioned that Laado 2 where he had worked in 2018 had the contract with one-sided clauses. Siddharth claimed that even when he received a cheque, it bounced.
In an interview with India TV, Siddharth spoke about being harassed mentally and financially. He said, "It’s been 2 and half years I am pursuing the production house for my hard-earned money. But they haven’t cleared my dues till now. I am mentally and financially harassed by them. I have registered my complaint with CINTAA for more than 1 and a half years. Last month I received a cheque from them for my remaining balance but that too has bounced. We all know the bouncing of cheque is a criminal offence. But I am still hopeful that the production house will understand the situation and clear my dues. The current corona crisis adds to the woes. CINTAA is looking into the matter. I hope the matter to be resolved as soon as possible."
He further spoke about the issues in the contract saying, "I also want to raise the point that the contracts made my producers are one-sided and it crushes the artist. Some of the points mentioned in the contract:
1) if I fall in love with co-actor/ technician on the set, I will have to pay 5 crore fine
2) if I report late to set by few hours I have to pay fine upto 9 lakh rs for a day
What about when the production house delays the payment of artists by more than 2 years, no fine on them. No penalty. Why so much disparity!"
It's not the first time a TV actor has opened up on a problem like this, earlier this year, actress Chahat Pandey, spoke up on non-payment of dues for years. And as per reports, this is not a problem that is happening specifically due to the pandemic induced lockdown but has been happening before it as well.
Also, in 2017 comedian Sunil Pal had claimed that producer Anees Bazmee asked him to perform at a private event but never paid him later. He had said, “I have around Rs 20-25 lakh stuck in the market with various producers. It is quite common in the industry for producers to pay up late. However, we, as artists, understand if a producer is genuinely out of resources or liquid money. But, when a producer like Anees - who plays in crores of rupees - behaves like this, it is not pardonable,”
Meanwhile, talking about Siddharth, after starting his acting journey with Mukti Bandhan in 2011, the actor worked in popular shows such as Betaal Aur Singhasan Battisi, Doli Armano Ki, Singhasan Battisi, and more.
