It all started in January last year, after Hrithik Roshan tweeted, “There r more chances of me having had an affair with d Pope dan any of d (I m sure wonderful) women d media hs ben naming. Thanks but no thanks (sic).“ The tweet was supposedly directed at Kangana Ranaut, who apparently referred to him (without naming him per se) as a 'silly ex' in a previous interview to a website. Hrithik's tweet, which intended to clarify his stand, opened a can of worms. He sent a legal notice (citing defamation) to the actress for maligning his name and reputation. He expected an apology as well. On the contrary, Kangana sent a legal notice to him, accusing him of intimidation.

The legal battle took an ugly turn and all hell broke loose, as private mails and innumerable lawyer statements surfaced at regular intervals. Hrithik revealed that he had received about 3,000 emails from Kangana's e-mail ID. Kangana alleged that Hrithik hacked into her account and sent all those mails to himself. He filed a police complaint to interrogate this but no logical conclusion was derived.

Just when we thought the storm had calmed, Kangana's explosive statements on Hrithik in her recent interviews fueled the fire all over again. A few days ago, things got messier after details of Hrithik's complaint against Kangana, submitted to the Mumbai Police's Cyber Crime Department in April this year, emerged in which the actor had alleged he was stalked by Kangana. Her lawyer Rizwan Siddiquee questioned the timing of this `leak'. Her sister Rangoli tweeted, “Evryone cn tell who is the stalker here forgt about Kangana she hs movd on n stalker uncle pls focus on ur children and wife Tnx @iHrithik (sic).“

A certain section of the media, who got access to the controversial mails, on Wednesday, said that the forensic report had 'cleared' Hrithik, saying he never used the device which received Kangana's emails.

Hrithik's official statement

I choose to be on a path of creativity, productivity and constructive work. Anything that isn’t in alignment with that, I tend to ignore, sidestep and treat as a distraction. I believe that ignorance, non reaction and staying on the path of dignity is the best way to discourage any persistent unwanted intrusions. But Just like a nagging health issue sometimes ignored can turn malignant, this situation for me has unfortunately turned malignant. In case of the matter at hand, it seems the media has no intention of letting go.

I don’t see any grace in adding to this circus by testifying in defence of my character in a situation that I have no involvement in whatsoever.

I have been dragged into a dirty perverse mess without a choice in the matter. This is something that is not of my making.

The truth is, I have never met the lady in question one on one in my entire life. Yes, we have worked together, but there has been no meeting in private. Thats the truth

Please understand, I am not fighting against an allegation of an affair. Or being childish trying to uphold a ‘good guy” image. I am very aware of my faults, I am human.

I am in fact protecting myself from something far more serious, sensitive and destructive than that.

Sadly, very few from the media or the public seem to be interested in the truth. This has been a hard-learnt fact for me.

If the people are comfortable with a lie because it doesn’t threaten their model of the world where a girl is the victim and the man the aggressor then so be it. I am ok with that too.

Women have suffered centuries of abuse at the hands of men and it infuriates me how some men can be so brutal and they deserve the harshest punishment. But by that logic if it ordains that one man can’t be vulnerable and one woman can’t be a liar, so be it. I’m ok with that too.

An alleged 7-year long, passionate affair between two high profile celebrities with no trail left behind.

No evidence, no paparazzi pictures, no witnesses, not even a memento in possession like a selfie taken at the alleged engagement which is claimed to have happened in Paris in Jan 2014. Nothing that constitutes an exchange or any sort of proof of a romantic relationship.

Yet we want to believe the other party because the rhetoric is -why would a girl lie.

My passport details show no travel outside the country in Jan 2014, which is the date that this alleged engagement supposedly took place. In Paris.

The only so-called proof presented of this alleged “relationship”, was a photoshopped picture in the media. This was immediately exposed, the very next day by friends including my ex-wife.

These questions are not even asked, because we are taught to protect the woman, as we should. I myself have been brought up to think the same way, by my parents and the wonderful women in my life who have been my rock and support system. I’m deeply grateful to them. I will do my best to teach my children the same values of family and dignity. And yes, I will teach them to stand up for women. Always.

There are 3000 one sided mails which either I have sent to myself or the woman in question has sent to me. The Cyber-Crime Dept. can prove or disprove either story, in just a few days. Towards that purpose, I have surrendered all my devices including laptops / phones etc which are still lying with the cyber cell , but the other party has refused to do so. The investigation hasn’t been closed.

This is not, and I repeat, not a lovers spat. I humbly request people to stop labelling it as one and, for a second, try and see it for what it really is.

I have been harassed by this for 4 years and the well meaning and probably necessary social bias toward women has deemed me helpless in defending myself.

I am not angry, I have seldom allowed anger into my life. I have not had a single fight in my life, with a man or a woman. Even in my divorce, there was no fight. I, and those around me, have always chosen peace.

I am not here to accuse or judge anyone, but it’s time I defend the truth because when truth suffers the collective consciousness of society suffers. Civilization suffers. Closer to home, families suffer. Children suffer.”

Kangana's lawyer's statement
Advocate Rizwan Siddiquee representing Ms Kangana Ranaut states, “My client categorically seeks answers to the below questions, which have remained unanswered since very long. Instead of coming out clean and answering the below questions Mr Hrithik Roshan is only using diversionary tactics.

Mr Hrithik Roshan very well knew that my client's emails were hacked since May 2014 and he was personally accused of the criminal act of hacking her email accounts. Under these circumstances, why did he take any risk of slyly receiving, collecting and saving thousands of unverified emails on his personal email ID from a hacked account, despite the fact the charges of hacking were made against him personally since May 2014, and not as an afterthought?

Mr Hrithik Roshan, as a married man and father of two young children, should have been shocked and should have immediately spoken to my client or her sister or other family members and complained about the emails being received by him. Why did he fail to take the right step and instead, kept meticulously collecting these unverified and fabricated emails from a hacked account, instead of deleting them forthwith and reprimanding my client with full authority, if he had actually no guilt and had committed absolutely no wrong?

When my client was lending full co-operation and was willing to be a part of the Criminal Complaint then Mr Hrithik Roshan had no good reason to lie to the police or cause delay in filing a FIR against an imposter, then on what grounds did he lie to the police and only file an informal complaint instead of a FIR against an imposter, and that too, without knowledge of my client, who was a concerned and interested party?

Why was it so important for Mr Hrithik Roshan to wait for about 7 months and first collect thousand of all sorts of beneficial emails from a hacked account, and only thereafter pursue an “informal Police complaint“. What was the aim and intent behind this act?

Why did Mr Hrithik Roshan, only after receiving a strong reply notice, then seek to formally lodge a FIR after about 2 years against an imposter, and is now miserably trying to look for an imposter despite full knowledge that there never was any imposter in the first place and had there been any imposter as alleged by Mr Hrithik Roshan, then the said imposter would have already done serious damage with the material data which was collected by the said imposter through emails?

Why is Mr Hrithik Roshan so desperately seeking to rely on a private and favourable forensic report which he has personally paid for?

My client and Mr Hrithik Roshan share the same family doctor since many years and Mr Hrithik Roshan knows fully well that my client does not suffer from any kind of mental ailments or syndromes whatsoever, then on what grounds did he circulate an unreliable and fabricated email to the media. What was the aim and object behind it?

Besides, my client states that no person would have under any circumstances circulated or shown to any third party (be it media or otherwise), any private pictures which were communicated by my client to Mr Hrithik Roshan during a relationship. Then on what grounds and on whose advice did he seek to openly outrage the modesty of my client?

My client demands to know that except for unreliable, fabricated and unverified emails which Mr Hrithik Roshan is relying upon (and has never shown to my client till date), is there any other act of stalking that has been indulged in on the part of my client. If no then on what grounds is Mr Hrithik Roshan claiming to be stalked by my client?“