Rucha in date trouble again

If Rucha Gujarathi thought the dark clouds over her date issues with UTV and Balaji Telefilms had moved away, she's mistaken.

The actress, who appears as Kali in Balaji's Kkusum and Suhana in UTV's Bhabhi, is involved in a major confrontation regarding her dates.

Sources say Rucha is scheduled to leave for a show in the US in the coming weeks. However, the dates she has chosen are the ones already booked by UTV. There is even talk about legal action being taken against her for this. However, UTV refused to deny or confirm the development.

"We don't want to make any statement at this particular point of time," they said. But a source close to the Bhabhi unit says, "Rucha knew well in advance she was committed to Bhabhi for those days. In spite of that, she went ahead and confirmed them for her overseas stint."

Rucha's denial

When contacted, Rucha completely denied any such development, saying, "I don't know who is spreading all this talk. I have no such problems regarding any of my dates."

Mediating agency

Playing a mediator in this situation is Cine and TV Artistes' Association (CINTA), which has been approached by the production house to try and seek a peaceful resolution to the problem.

Confirming this, Dharmesh Tiwari, general secretary, CINTA, says, "We met on Thursday evening and sent a letter to UTV, where Rucha has agreed to make amendments to her schedule to meet the required dates. Now UTV must decide if it's feasible for them."

Tiwari adds that CINTA's main purpose is to seek a fair and just solution to the problem.

"We always hear both the parties and arrive at the conclusion. If the artist is wrong then we tell him so, the decision has to be balanced." Rucha will now have to wait for UTV to react to the letter sent by CINTA. This could take days, or even weeks.



Panga with Balaji


In July, the actress faced the wrath of Balaji boss Ekta Kapoor, who threatened to take legal action over Rucha joining UTV's Bhabhi. She was to be sued for breach of contract (which she signed in December 2004, stating that she would allot 25 days in a month to Balaji) and would not shoot for other production houses.

All newcomers who join Balaji have to sign one or two-year contracts, stipulating the working days allotted to the production house — with the standard clause that they cannot shoot for other serials.

The issue was amicably resolved when Rucha personally met Ekta and arrived at a mutual understanding