Article:Imran Khan has the last laugh

A fter keeping a low profile for two months since his ouster from Kulvaddhu (Sony), Imran Mashkoor Khan has finally decided to speak up. He says, "Now that the show has gone off air, I think it's time for me to clear the air." Saying, he takes a few days off for Muharram every year, he adds, "I had made this clear to the production house (Maver- ick) and the channel in Novem- ber itself and they had agreed to give me time off." The replacement drama hap- pened when Khan was on leave. Sachin Sharma had replaced the actor to play the lead role in Kulvaddhu. Khan says, "I was replaced without being consulted. My agreement with Maverick men- tioned that in case of termina- tion, one month's minimum notice was mandatory This was . overlooked in my case. Also my dues have still not been cleared so far." Khan, unfortunately doesn't , have a copy of the contract to support his claim: "Maverick did not provide me with any con- tract until the first week of December. Finally when they did, it was not signed by Dr Anuj Saxena or any represen- tative of Maverick. Besides, it was a far cry from what had been promised to me "After much hullabaloo, Mav- erick consented to revise the contract according to the terms promised. Just a few days before my leave, I was given the final draft of my contract. Again it was not signed by any represen- tative of Maverick. I signed it and sent it back to complete the formalities. I still have to get a copy from them," informs Khan. What about the reports that he had fought with the the pro- ducer and had threatened to resign if his leave was not grant- ed? He comments, "They were all false reports. I was promised by the producer that my name would be cleared. Believing them, I continued to work and then proceeded for my leave." Little did he know then that he will no longer be a part of the show. He adds " I'm not here to help generate cheap publicity for others: at the cost of my own reputation." What does he have to say now that the show has been pulled off air? "It was someone's mali- cious plan to get me replaced and bad mouth me. Within days, the TRPs dropped. Now I'm hav- ing the last laugh," he concludes.