Indian bureaucrat Sameer Wankhede filed a defamation case in the Delhi High Court against Red Chillies Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. and Netflix for their series ‘The Ba***ds of Bollywood’. Marking Aryan Khan’s directorial debut, Wankhede alleged that the seven-episode series contained “false, malicious, and defamatory content aimed at damaging his reputation,” reported ANI.

Netizens could not help but find an uncanny resemblance between the actor who played the role of the ‘NCG officer’ in the series and Sameer Wankhede, the former NCB Mumbai zonal director. In his defamation suit, Wankhede has sought Rs 2 crore in damages from Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan and his production company which gave wings to ‘The Ba***ds of Bollywood’. Wankhede claims that he would donate this amount to the Tata Memorial Cancer Hospital for the treatment of cancer patients, as per reports.

What did Sameer Wankhede allege?

As per an NDTV report, the statement from Wankhede revealed that the Indian Revenue Service officer sought relief for the permanent nature of damages and mandatory injunction. He also took the OTT platform streaming Aryan Khan’s series, Netflix, to court. “This series disseminates a misleading and negative portrayal of anti-drug enforcement agencies, thereby eroding public confidence in law enforcement institutions,” read the statement.

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In his statement to the media, Wankhede also called this a deliberate attempt to malign his reputation. It also pointed out the “the case involving Sameer Wankhede and Aryan Khan,” which is “pending and sub-judice before the Hon’ble Bombay High Court and the NDPS Special Court,” reported NDTV.

Just before the actors conduct the raid, they are seen saying ‘Satyamev Jayate’, words that stand tall with the National Emblem. Condemning the use of this phrase in this context, Aryan Khan’s OTT debut has invited huge scrutiny.

The scene behind the case

‘Today we will raid here,’ one of the most memorable scenes from the first episode of the series opened with this dialogue. It shows a van of several officers from a non-governmental organisation ‘NCG’ in their attempt against drugs. Check the scene here:

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The character playing the officer identifies himself as a part of ‘war against drugs’, ‘fall against drugs’, and ‘a part of NCG’. He calls out the character DJ Adam, using an illegal substance. Pointed towards the son of a popular Bollywood actor, he goes on to arrest him. This was reportedly, a not-so-subtle nod towards the infamous arrest of Shah Rukh Khan’s son, Aryan Khan by the NCB in October 2021. This follows another case registered against the makers and Ranbir Kapoor, who was seen vaping in the last episode of the series.