Alia Bhatt's latest release Jigra, directed by Vasan Bala has been talked about for all the wrong reasons in the last few days. The film released in October 11 to mixed reviews and failed to register a good opening weekend at the box office. Now, Manipur-based actor Bijou Thaangjam has accused the makers of Alia Bhatt-starrer of ‘unprofessional behaviour’. The actor took to his X account to share that he was initially considered for a role in the film but was left in the dark about it owing to which he lost out on other projects and wasted his time.

What are the accusations?

Bijou took to his X account on Sunday to share a statement on what happened during the casting process of the film last year. He wrote in the caption, “I’m not writing this with any agenda or accusations. I just want to share the reality of how actors like me from the Northeast are often treated by big production houses. Hopefully, this sheds some light on what we face.”

The statement shared by Bijou read, "I am not here to jump on the bandwagon on the Jigra controversy over the alleged copying of Divya Khossla Kumar's Savi, but I've been keeping my own experience with the Jigra team under wraps for a while, and maybe it's time to speak up. Back in 2023, I was approached by their casting team to audition for a role. I sent my tapes twice over the span of four months, playing along with their timeline. By the end of November, they told me I'd be shooting in December — fantastic, right? Except they never gave me any firm shoot dates. Still, they booked me for the entire month of December, expecting that I'd be ready to shoot for them at any moment. As someone based in Imphal, Manipur, I made it very clear from the start that travel arrangements would need to be made, but that didn't seem to matter."

I’m not writing this with any agenda or accusations. I just want to share the reality of how actors like me from the Northeast are often treated by big production houses. Hopefully, this sheds some light on what we face. #Jigra #JigraMovie #AliaBhatt #DivyaKhosla #VasanBala pic.twitter.com/zZBZjxOz6k

— Bijou ThaangJam (@BijouThaangjam) October 13, 2024

He added, "Throughout the month, I was left in the dark, communicating with the casting team but receiving no real updates on when I'd actually be needed. The last message I received was on December 26th, stating 'Waiting for a revert', and after that — complete silence. Meanwhile, I'd lost out on other projects because I was sitting around, waiting for them to give me the go-ahead. But of course, that never came."

‘My time was wasted’

Concluding his statement, the actor said: “I understand how big production houses operate. The director is undeniably talented, but the way they handled this entire situation was deeply unprofessional. For actors like me from the Northeast, it felt particularly dismissive, almost discriminatory. My time was wasted, and I missed out on other opportunities just because they expected I'd be available at a moment's notice. I am not writing this with any agenda or accusations. I just want to share the reality of how actors like me from the Northeast are often treated by big production houses. Hopefully, this sheds some light on what we face.”

Earlier, actor Divya Khossla Kumar had slammed actor Alia Bhatt, accusing her of rigging the box office numbers. While Alia did not respond, Karan Johar posted a note on his Instagram stories that read, “Silence is the best speech you will ever give to fools.” Divya doubled down though, posting, “Truth will always offend fools opposed to it” on her stories.

Jigra opened to a lukewarm ₹4.25 crore on its opening day, registering the worst worst box office opening in 10 years for Alia. It has so far earned ₹16.75 crore so far, with the third-day collection being ₹5.65 crore.

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