Friends at loggerheads

Ajay Devgn angry with Kumar Mangat for holding meetings with Fox Star Studios without the actor’s knowledge

Friendships in Bollywood seem to come with an expiry date. The latest B-town friends to have hit a rough patch being Ajay Devgn and Kumar Mangat. Rumour has it that Devgn and Mangat had a spat over Vishal Bhardwaj’s film Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola recently. Devgn was miffed with his friend Mangat when the latter held meetings with Fox Star Studios, the co-producers of the film in question without informing the actor. A source informed Mumbai Mirror, “It was a misunderstanding between friends. One person (Mangat) took his friend (Devgn) for granted. The friend, in turn, felt that his personal space has been invaded. Maybe, outsiders fuelled the fight.” According to sources, it started when Devgn agreed to do the film and Mangat got a bit carried away. A source close to Devgn and Mangat informed, “Mangat began discussing the project on an individual level with the co-producers. Devgn was not amused. He felt that Mangat should not have ventured into further talks with Fox Star Studios without keeping Devgn in the loop about each and every minute detail.”  While Devgn getting angry with his friend over space issues might have been justified, Mangat too had his reasons. “To be fair to Mangat, he did not imagine in his wildest dreams that Ajay will back out from the film. Also Mangat is after all, the co-producer for the project,” added the source. Devgn opted out of Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola since he was lured by the money Viacom 18 Motion Pictures offered him for Ashwini Dhir’s Son Of Sardar (Mumbai Mirror, October 15, 2011). Hoping that the misunderstanding between the two long standing friends in Bollywod gets sorted out, the source added, “Let’s hope it gets resolved. Ajay Devgn and Kumar Mangat go back a long way. They have always been there for each other.” Ajay Devgn and Kumar Mangat have known each other for the last 20 years. For the last 18 years Mangat has successfully managed Devgn’s career. In 1996, Devgn started a film distribution outfit, Devgan Entertainment & Software Ltd. with Mangat as the CEO. Mangat soon went on to become an independent producer with Ajay playing the lead role in most of his ventures - Omkatra, Sunday, Atithi Tum Kab Jaoge, Toonpur Ka Superrhero. Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola now stars Imran Khan in the lead (Mumbai Mirror, October 25, 2011 ). After Devgn walked out from the project, Bhardwaj had approached Shahid Kapoor who politely declined the offer, citing date issues (Mumbai Mirror, October 20, 2011). While Devgn and Mangat chose not to comment, Devgn's official spokesperson said, "The rumours of a tiff between Ajay Devgn and Kumar Mangat are baseless and untrue. Mangat has worked with Devgn as his business manager for more than 20 years; he has established his brilliance as a reputed producer as well. Their working partnership is based on trust and respect. They always ask each other advice and guidance for every project."