Sonil Dedhia (MID-DAY; June 7, 2017)

Her shows have ruled our TV screens for over two decades, and her recent foray into the digital space set fans’ expectations skyhigh. With her ALT Balaji app, Ekta Kapoor launched five web series; the sixth show, The Test Case starring Nimrat Kaur, was billed as one of her most ambitious projects. However, after a delayed first episode, the show seems to have hit a wall. Creative differences between Ekta and director Nagesh Kukunoor is to blame, informs an insider.

“The show was supposed to be launched on April 24, but the first episode came out a week late. Now, there is no sign of the next one. They had shot for four episodes almost two months ago, but those have been put on hold. Test Case is one of Ekta’s most experimental works on the app and she was deeply involved with it. Nagesh, however, needed his own space,” explains the source.

The show sees Nimrat plays the role of the Indian Army’s first woman combatant. It also stars Juhi Chawla as the minister of defence, Atul Kulkarni and Rahul Dev as commanders and Kaur’s superiors in the training academy.

A cast member attributes the delay to production issues. “Our show has been shot and the next episodes are ready to be out. There could be some production and logistical issues, but no creative differences as such,” says an actor on condition of anonymity.

The show’s publicist refused to comment. We reached out to Ekta and Nagesh via text message, but neither had responded till the time of going to press.