Mumbai: The Bandra police have busted a scam of giving out film awards by using the name of Dadasaheb Phalke. An FIR has been registered against Anil Mishra, a former spot boy, and his son Abhishek.
The duo founded Dadasaheb Phalke International Film Festival (DPIFF) and misrepresented its events as government award ceremonies, pressurising film stars to attend. The duo secured sponsorships from reputed companies and several state governments since 2016 and used photos and fake letters from the President of India, the Prime Minister, and several other ministers to promote the festival.
As per the complaint, Shah Rukh Khan, Alia Bhatt, Rekha, Kareena Kapoor, Shahid Kapoor, and many others were deceived to attend the festival. The trademark registration office had rejected Mishra’s application to use the name DPIFF. However, he continued to use the name and went ahead with organising the festival.
Case Registered
A case for cheating and cheating by personation has been filed against the father son duo and another unidentified person on a complaint by Sameer Dixit, 57, the state president of the BJP Film Union, Maharashtra. Dixit, a resident of Thane West, works as a film distributor with an office in Andheri West.
On February 4, the BJP Film Union received information that DPIFF would be organised at the Taj Lands Hotel in Bandra West on February 19-20. The event was to be organised by International Tourism Festival Pvt Ltd, whose director Anil Mishra and his wife Parvati had reportedly obtained permissions from various departments, including the police and the Stage Performance Scrutiny Board.
Further investigations by Dixit and his colleague revealed that Mishra and his associates had begun promoting the festival through a website. They uploaded photos of President Draupadi Murmu, the Prime Minister, Home Minister, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Tourism Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, and other senior leaders, along with fabricated letters containing fake best wishes. They falsely portrayed the festival as part of the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award. Mishra misrepresented the event as a government festival and secured sponsorships from PVR Inox, Cinepolis, Big FM, PNB Bank, and several other companies, including several state tourism departments and nationalised banks. He also falsely claimed that well-known actors and actresses would be present at the event.
Additionally, Mishra was selling festival tickets on BookMyShow, pricing some as high as Rs2.50 lakh for a couple. He used the logo of the government’s Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya on social media to promote the event. Moreover, he printed fake visiting cards stating that he was a consultant committee member of the Food Corporation of India.
Dixit stated, “This is a massive scam. Mishra deceived public sector units and government agencies to secure sponsorships. This is a private award festival, but they pretended it was a government award and distributed honours to several big stars and personalities. This is not just financial fraud; it is also an insult to the legacy of Dadasaheb Phalke.”
