"she just detached herself from the film"
Upasana Singh has filed a case against Miss Universe Harnaaz Kaur Sandhu for allegedly breaching a contract for her Punjabi film.
The actress-producer said that a legal notice has been sent to the beauty queen, admitting that she has lost a lot of money because of her.
The film in question is Bai Ji Kuttange, which also stars Upasana’s son.
Upasana explained: “My contract with Harnaaz is before she became Miss Universe. I gave her a chance when she was a struggling newcomer. She used to stay with us in Mumbai.
“I have groomed her, taught her acting.
“She was just like my kid, and she used to call me her godmother. I threw a party when she won the international pageant.
“But she broke her ties with us after getting international recognition.”
The film was initially set for a May 2022 release, but Upasana said the release date was changed to August 19 so that “Harnaaz gets free from her Miss Universe commitments, and can give time to the film”.
Upasana, who gained critical acclaim as ‘Bua’ in Comedy Nights with Kapil, claimed that Harnaaz was supposed to give 25 days for promotion as a lead.
“But she just detached herself from the film, and it seems from the Punjabi film industry as well after she won the pageant.
“I even told her to give me 5 days if 25 days is too much for her now.
“She is not even posting anything about the film on social media, when she is posting about all the brands and parties on her handle.”
Upasana says she took the legal route after “Harnaaz stopped responding to her mails, messages and calls”.
“She didn’t even respond to my notice. I was tired of chasing her.
“Now, the court is sending her a summon today (August 5).”
Recalling an incident, Upasana said:
“Recently, an actor from the team called her and asked her if she is willing to do a show in Dubai, and she responded to show her willingness, and told him to reach out to her team to discuss money matters.
“When the actor requested her to give dates to me, she disconnected the call only. Imagine?”
She says the alleged incident has put a financial strain on her.
“I put in my hard-earned money to produce the film. When we changed the release date, at that time also, I lost so much money.
“Now, many sponsors are backing out during promotion saying ‘Harnaaz is not coming’.”
“I had to take a loan to release and promote my film now.
“Right now, it seems Punjabi actors and the industry have become too small for Harnaaz.
“When she won the pageant, she said she is a proud Punjabi, and when it came to doing something for the industry, and give it international exposure, she took a step back.
“She was doing all this drama. Right now, her focus is Bollywood and Hollywood, the Punjabi film industry is too small for her.”
A lawsuit has been filed in the Chandigarh district court. Stating that action will be taken, Upasana added:
“But I am the one losing. I have lost so much money and the promotion time which was valuable for my film.
“She broke my trust. I just hope she doesn’t repeat this with anyone else.”
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