Actor Vijay Deverakonda questioned by ED over forex violation in 'Liger'

Directed by Puri Jagannadh, the sports drama also featured Ananya Panday and Ramya Krishnan in pivotal roles.

Hyderabad, Nov 30: Actor Vijay Deverakonda was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday in connection with the funding of 'Liger' movie.

Earlier, the probe agency had issued summons to director Puri Jagannadh and Charmee. The makers were called for questioning over Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) violations in the production of Liger.

After receiving a complaint that foreign funding was invested in Liger (including Hawala money), the ED is looking into alleged Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) violations. Filmmaker Puri Jagannadh and actor-turned-producer Charmme Kaur were called in for interrogation in the aforementioned case earlier this month.

The two were reportedly asked about the "source of investment" for the movie, according to IANS. According to the allegations, the investments have been made from the accounts of several political leaders abroad. As per current reports, the ED discovered that the money invested in Liger was initially sent to Dubai, where funds were returned and used to produce the movie.

Made on a budget of arround Rs 90 crores, Liger did a business of Rs 41 crore (nett) in India in its theatrical run and was a commercial flop.

On the work front, Vijay Deveakonda is currently busy shooting for his much-awaited project Kushi. Featuring Samantha Ruth Prabhu as the female lead, the Telugu language romantic drama is being directed by Shiva Nirvana. Produced by Mythri Movie Makers, the film was originally scheduled to release next month, on Christmas. However, it has now been pushed to the first quarter of 2023.

Directed by Puri Jagannadh, the sports drama also featured Ananya Panday and Ramya Krishnan in pivotal roles.

Amid huge expectations, the bilingual film was released in August this year. However, after hitting the theatres, Liger received a majorly negative response and turned out to be a huge box office disaster.