Actor Pooja Bhatt on Wednesday said her home banner Vishesh Films, under father Mahesh and uncle Mukesh Bhatt, has done much more than the combined efforts of Bollywood in launching new talent across the board within the movie industry.
The actor’s comments came as a response to the nepotism debate that has intensified after the death of Sushant Singh Rajput.
Her family has been at the receiving end of the divided social media discourse, with both her filmmaker father and her half-sister, actor Alia Bhatt being criticised for riding on the privileges of an insider.
Taking to Twitter, Pooja Bhatt said it had been funny how family production house, which launched one among the famous outsiders Kangana Ranaut in Anurag Basu’s 2006 “Gangster”, is now being dragged into the talk.
“Have been asked to discuss the recent topic Nepotism that folks are raging about. As someone who hails from a ‘family’ that has launched more new talent – actors, musicians and technicians than the whole movie industry combined, I can only laugh. Facts don’t find takers. Fiction does,” the actor-filmmaker wrote.
Pooja Bhatt, 48, said her family always tries to scout new talent such a lot in order that the banner was “accused” of harbouring bias against established names.
“There was a time when the Bhatts were accused of getting something against established actors and made to feel inferior for less than working with/launching newcomers and not chasing stars.
“And now an equivalent people play the nepotism card? Google and tweet guys and won’t even say think and speak,” she said.
Citing the instance of Ranaut, who in 2017 famously called filmmaker Karan Johar ‘the flagbearer of nepotism’ on his talk show, Pooja Bhatt said Basu may have “discovered” the National Award winner “but Vishesh Films backed his vision” and invested within the film”.
Basu has previously directed “Saaya” (2003) and “Murder” (2004) for the banner.
Pooja Bhatt, who will next be seen within the Mahesh Bhatt-directed “Sadak 2”, said the upcoming film gave a replacement music composer, Suniljeet, an opportunity to board the project after her father heard his tunes.
“Even #Sadak2 gives birth to a fresh talent within the sort of @Suniljeet72. A teacher from Chandigarh who came to our office with no prior appointment, a dream, a harmonium & an excellent song called ‘Ishq Kamaal’ that was absorbed into the film on first hearing by my father,” she further argued.
“Sadak 2”, a sequel to her 1991 film directed by Mahesh Bhatt, also features returning cast member Sanjay Dutt, and new entrants Alia Bhatt and Aditya Roy Kapur.