The Amboli police have arrested a web series maker and owner of Don Infotainment for allegedly cheating a film producer of Rs 1.25 crore. Last month, the cops had booked Mohammed Ali (above) and celebrity physiotherapist Dr Ali Irani on the complaint of Vijay Mulchandani, who said the duo had promised him money for the rights of his movie but did pay him. While Irani was granted anticipatory bail on January 1, the Dindoshi Sessions court rejected Ali’s bail, leading to his arrest on Thursday night. The police said they found his signature on a cheque, which apparently bounced, given to Mulchandani as part of the deal.

Ali’s lawyer Ali Kaashif Khan called the matter a civil dispute and accused Mulchandani of portraying it as a crime. He said the sessions court failed to take on record “crucial documents and facts” and “erroneously” added sections of the IT Act which delayed his client’s anticipatory bail plea in the Bombay High Court. “Despite all these errors, the court didn’t even grant a single day of interim protection. It didn't even consider the prevailing Covid pandemic.”

Khan added, “They have even brought the accused handcuffing which is also against the Supreme Court guidelines in the Sunil Batra case. We will be taking rightful action against the department without any delay now.” An officer from Amboli police station, “We arrested the accused last night and he was produced before the court today. He has been remanded in four-day police custody. We are investigating to find out the nitty-gritty of the deal.”

As per Mulchandani, he produced a film named #Yaaram, which was released in October 2019. He met Dr Irani and Ali for the film’s OTT release. The accused offered him Rs 1.25 crore and the movie was released on an OTT platform in March 2020. Mulchandani said the duo didn’t give him money citing the pandemic. They allegedly gave him a cheque in February 2021, but it got bounced. When two more cheques were also dishonoured in June 2021, he learnt from the bank that the account had been shut in March 2021. Later, Mulchandani found from a public notice issued by Rajshri Productions that the accused had sold the movie rights for Rs 15 lakh. He then filed a police complaint.

Mehmood Ali, owner of OTT platform Don Cinema, was recently arrested alongwith celebrity physiotherapist Dr. Ali Irani, by the Amboli (Bombay) police in a cheating case. The two had acquired producer Vijay Mulchandani’s #Yaaram for Don Infotainment for Rs. 1.25 crore. In spite of the film streaming on the platform from March 2020, no money was allegedly given to Mulchandani.

Mehmood Ali in January 2021 gave Vijay Mulchandani a cheque dated February 19, 2021, but it bounced. Mulchandani was then given several cheques in lieu of the bounced cheque, but they all were returned unpaid by the bank. On enquiries, the producer was told by the bank that the account of Don Infotainment (name of the company) had been closed in March 2021.

Meanwhile, Mulchandani learnt that Mehmood Ali had sold the streaming rights of his film to Rajshri Productions for Rs. 15 lakh. He then lodged a police complaint.