Bahrain royal, a Bollywood-fan, faces lawsuit over meetings with celebrities
What's the story
A member of the royal family of Bahrain is facing a lawsuit in a UK court for allegedly refusing to pay money to Egyptian businessman who fixed his meetings with Bollywood stars. Businessman Ahmed Adel Abdallah alleged Sheikh Hamad Isa Ali al-Khalifa, a distant relative of Bahrain's king, abruptly ended agreement of meeting with Bollywood stars and didn't pay him the money. Reportedly, he owes $42.5 million to Ahmed.
Love for Bollywood
Sheikh became a Bollywood fan, thanks to Indian nanny
Sheikh, who is said to be in his fifties, has a penchant for Bollywood stars. His love for Bollywood started early since he was brought up by an Indian nanny. According to the agreement between the two, Sheikh had to pay $1.5 million per meeting to Ahmed. Apart from this, he was supposed to pay $500,000 for every third meeting.
The meetings
Sheikh met Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan and other stars
Keeping his end of the bargain, Ahmed fixed the Sheikh's meeting with Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan on January 16, 2016, and February 11, 2016, respectively. He met them at a Mumbai hotel. Sheikh met Ranveer Singh at Mina al-Salam Hotel in Dubai on March 6 and 17, 2016 and Aditya Roy Kapoor on March 16, 2016. Sheikh was to meet 26 Bollywood stars.
The deal
They struck a deal in London in 2016
The agreement was struck after a conversation between Sheikh and Ahmed in 2016 in London. According to the agreement, the meetings were supposed to last 15-20 minutes. Not only this, Sheikh wanted Ahmed's firm, CBSC Events & Exhibition and Conference Organizers, to sponsor a Bollywood event in Dubai, wherein he would present at least one award to one Bollywood star.
Details
After few meetings, Sheikh allegedly refused to pay money
Things took a rocky turn when Sheikh refused to pay $500,000 for the film awards. He also canceled meetings with Akshay Kumar and Aamir Khan in April 2016, Ahmed alleged. Ahmed claims Sheikh owes him money for his losses and the money for the award function. Sheikh's lawyers said the issue should not be heard in the UK, but a court observed otherwise since the oral agreement happened in London.
Defense
However, Sheikh claims Ahmed started demanding more money
However, Sheikh's defense has claimed he pulled out of the agreement after Ahmed started making changes in the deal and demanded more money. Ahmed earlier told Sheikh meeting a Bollywood star would cost $50,000 per actor but later told him meeting well-known stars would cost him $500,000. Sheikh's lawyers said he paid $3.4 million before telling Ahmed he didn't want more meetings.
Global case?
Now, the case will be heard this month
The UK High Court of Justice Jeremy Cooke will hear arguments of both sides from November 12. The proceedings are expected to last five days and both parties could be cross-examined. Ahmed's counsel Pavani Reddy said, "This is an interesting case and involves oral agreements reached in London between two parties from the Middle East, concerning arranging meetings with famous Bollywood stars."