Bollywood director Vikram Bhatt and his wife have been in jail for over a month, accused of defrauding IVF pioneer Dr Ajay Murdia of nearly Rs 45 crore in a film production deal gone wrong. The case stems from a partnership to make movies honoring Murdia's work and a local deity, but only two films were produced, both flops. A Rajasthan court recently upheld the fraud charges, rejecting pleas to quash the FIR.
Dr Ajay Murdia, the 73-year-old founder of Indira IVF, built a fertility empire starting in 1988 after leaving a stable job as a pathologist in Udaipur. From one clinic named after his late wife Indira, who passed away in 2020 from cancer, it expanded to 170 centers across India, aided by his two doctor sons. Seeking to honor her legacy in helping childless couples, Murdia envisioned a film about his work.
Introduced by fellow Udaipur resident Dinesh Kataria, Murdia met Bhatt and his wife Shwetambari in Mumbai in March 2024. Bhatt, known for horror hits like Raaz, proposed two films: a Rs 15 crore biopic on Murdia and a Rs 25 crore movie on Bhagwan Shrinathji from Nathdwara temple. Later, Bhatt convinced Murdia to add Rs 7 crore for two more unspecified projects, forming Indira Entertainment in partnership with Shwetambari.
Payments totaling Rs 44.27 crore were made based on bills approved by Kataria, but Murdia's lawyer Manzoor Hussain alleges they were fake. Only two films materialized: the biopic Tumko Meri Kasam, starring Anupam Kher and Esha Deol, released on March 26, 2025, at Rs 15 crore cost, and a second at Rs 3 crore. With minimal promotion beyond a Udaipur premiere, they earned just Rs 65 lakh combined.
Bhatt dodged queries on the remaining films, prompting Murdia to file an FIR on November 8, 2025, at Bhupalpura Police Station in Udaipur for fraud involving Bhatt, Shwetambari, Kataria, and manager Mehboob Ansari. The four were arrested in Mumbai on December 7 and remain in Udaipur jail.
On January 5, 2026, Rajasthan High Court Justice Sameer Jain rejected their plea to quash the FIR, calling it a case of deliberate fund misappropriation, not mere breach of contract. Bhatt's lawyer Kamlesh Dave counters that the films' flop prevented further production, insisting it was a misunderstanding and they have proof for court.