The production house clarified that Pratik Shah was employed on the film as a freelancer for a limited period, and during this time, no complaints were received by their POSH (Protection from Sexual Harassment) internal committee.
Dharma Productions‘ official statement
The statement issued by Dharma said:
“At Dharma Productions we have a zero tolerance policy against inappropriate behavior and sexual harassment towards any individual working with us in any capacity, and we treat sexual harrasment cases very seriously. Mr. Pratik Shah was a freelancer on the project Homebound and was working on it for a limited period. His engagement with us has been completed. During this limited period our internal committee for POSH didn’t receive any complaints against him from any cast or crew on our film ‘Homebound.” Allegations levelled by filmmaker Abhinav Singh
Filmmaker Abhinav Singh took to social media to level serious allegations of emotional abuse and mental pressure against Pratik Shah. Through Instagram Stories, he called Shah a man with “predatory tendencies” and said that when he shared his story, about 20 women contacted him and shared their experiences.
Though he didn’t name names at first, he later directly revealed Pratik Shah’s name. Following this, Pratik Shah deleted his Instagram account.
Industry and social media reactions
Filmmaker Srishti Riya Jain also spoke out against Shah and said that he has been “involved in similar acts for the last four years.” She shared screenshots of discussions on Reddit that mentioned Shah’s inappropriate behaviour.
One Reddit user wrote, “Pratik Shah is a number one sleazeball. He tries to slide into every girl’s DM.”
Another user said, “He sent me a random request and then said ‘Sorry, sent it by mistake’. I felt weird and immediately unfollowed him.”
The controversy highlights the lack of oversight and abuse of power that exists in the freelancer work culture in the film industry. At the same time, Dharma Productions has denied any complaints, and multiple testimonies that have emerged online point to a pattern of Pratik Shah’s behaviour.
So far, no legal action has been taken and neither has Pratik Shah issued any public statement.
