The controversy surrounding Alia Bhatt and Vedang Raina's Jigra refuses to die down. Days after Bhushan Kumar's wife, actress Divya Khossla, accused Alia and the makers of the film of 'copying' Savi, she slammed Karan Johar for using 'derogatory' term to shut her down.
It all started after Divya took to her Instagram story a few days back to expose Alia and the makers of Jigra over rigging the box office numbers for the film. She had also claimed that Alia allegedly purchased tickets for 'fake collection.' Later, Karan also shared a story and without naming anyone, in which he wrote, "Silence is the best speech you will ever give to fools."
Reacting to Karan's post, Divya had written on Instagram, "Truth will always offend fools opposed to it."
Now, in an interview with Hindustan Times, Divya lashed out Karan and reacted to those calling her decision to call out Jigra makers a 'PR stunt'.
"When I speak up, Mr Karan Johar uses derogatory language to shut me down. Is it right to call a woman a fool for pointing out unethical practices? If this happens to me, what about those new to the industry? No one is a king here, and I won’t be treated like a subject. There are many more derogatory words which were used in their PR articles, and called my taking a stand as a PR stunt. I'm sorry, I don't need one. I'm already well known," Divya told the publication.
Lashing out at Alia, who is being called a 'hero' for her performance in Jigra, Divya stated, "Alia doesn’t need to resort to such tactics; she’s already well-established. But true heroism is in speaking against wrongdoing. Let the audience decide based on merit, not money and power."
Divya reiterated that Jigra is a copy of Savi and stated that both the films are based on the same storyline. Divya's film hit the big screens in May 2024.
Alia is yet to react to the ongoing controversy. She has been resharing positive reviews of Jigra and posting updates about the film on social media, however, she has remained tight-lipped about the controversy.
On October 12, Divya shared a photo of an empty theater, alleging that the theaters screening Jigra are running empty. "Went to Citi Mall PVR for Jigra show. Theatre was totally empty ... all theaters going empty every where #Aliabhatt me sach mein Bahut #Jigra hai.. khud hi tickets karide aur fake collections announce kar diye. Wonder why paid media is silent #weshdnotfooltheaudience #truthoverlies #HappyDussehra," she wrote.
She also added the hashtags, 'We should not fool the audience' and 'Truth over lies.'
Jigra vs Savi
Savi, also starring Harshvardhan Rane and Anil Kapoor, is about a housewife, played by Divya, who is is willing to go to great lengths to free her husband from prison in England. In Jigra, Alia's character plays the role of Satya, who is on a mission to save her younger brother Ankur (Vedang), who is imprisoned in a foreign jail.
Meanwhile, Jigra, which released on October 11, reportedly earned Rs 1.6 crore on the fifth day of release and the total collection of the film stands at Rs 19.85 crore. On the other hand, Savi earned Rs 13 crore at the box office in its entire lifetime.