While KriArj Entertainment is out of Parmanu: The Story Of Pokhran, and the film is now being released jointly by John Abraham’s JA Entertainment, Zee Studios and Kyta Productions next week. the development has not been a very happy one for the film's lead star John either.
While on the face of it, KriArj's exit was a victory for JA Entertainment, a trade source pointed out that Prernaa Arora's production house had not spent a rupee on the film.
The dispute between KriArj and JA Entertainment was largely about the payment of Rs5 crore to John once the film was ready for distribution.
Parmanu row: John Abraham was trying to blackmail me, says Prernaa Arora
The source explained, “From what I have heard, JA Entertainment will not be getting the money now. That money will only be paid if the film makes a profit at the box office. Also, [distributor] Vashu Bhagnani has committed Rs5 crore for P&A [prints and advertisements]. KriArj had pledged Rs10 crore."
Arora had claimed that her company had conceived of the project and taken it to JA Entertainment, paying the latter Rs30 crore to make the film, with the promise of an additional Rs5 crore to be paid before the film's release, and Rs10 crore for P&A.
But the source explained that before Zee Studios came on board, KriArj held 50% of the film's IPR or intellectual property rights while JA held the rest. "KriArj sold its IPR — digital, music, and satellite overseas distribution rights — to Zee for Rs30 crore. So, they lose nothing financially. Had they gone ahead with the film, they would have had to shell out Rs15 crore more, taking the film's cost to Rs45 crore, too much for a John Abraham film. If the film had failed, KriArj would have lost that money.”
Efforts to contact Arora and Bhagnani for their views failed. JA Entertainment, too, did not respond to an email.