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Tag: Soumya Vilekar

  • Planet Marathi founder faces FIR after Bombay HC order on forgery

    Planet Marathi founder faces FIR after Bombay HC order on forgery

    MUMBAI: The drama has moved off-screen and into the courtroom Planet Marathi’s founder Akshay Bardapurkar now faces a real-life script of forgery, fraud, and financial conspiracy after the Bombay High Court ordered the registration of an FIR against him and three others.

    A Bench of Justice Ravindra V. Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ashwin Ankhad, ruling on Criminal Writ Petition No. 4170 of 2025 filed by former partner Soumya Vilekar, directed Mulund Police to book Bardapurkar, casting director Manali Dixit, notary Dodha Doulat Ahire, and Dhaval Shah.

    At the heart of the case is a forged partnership deed dated 3 October 2023, allegedly bearing Vilekar’s signature, photograph, and a fake notarisation. She claims she never signed the document, which was used to approach Axis Bank, Deutsche Bank, and others to secure loans and dispose of intellectual property, all without her knowledge.

    Vilekar maintains that her only valid exit was through a Deed of Admission-cum-Retirement dated 15 January 2024, and accuses Bardapurkar of fabricating the earlier deed to siphon funds. She says she was left battling multiple litigations originally aimed at the company, exposing her to reputational and financial harm.

    “This is not merely forged paperwork, it’s a premeditated act of fraud and conspiracy,” Vilekar said, adding that Bardapurkar had diverted company funds for personal expenses and unauthorised purposes.

    The fallout for Planet Marathi has been severe. Its offices have remained shut for months, the app has ceased operations, and employees have resigned en masse. The company is also facing NCLT liquidation proceedings, while Bardapurkar himself is entangled in multiple legal battles:

    . Rs 87 lakh cheque bounce case filed by Aayush Shah

    . Rs 20 lakh dishonour case filed by Mausam Shah

    . Personal insolvency proceedings by Verse

    . Several Section 138 NI Act cases across Mumbai, Pune, and beyond

    The High Court’s intervention comes after Vilekar alleged that Mulund Police failed to act despite her submitting documentary evidence. The ruling marks another twist in a saga that has seen Planet Marathi, once touted as a Marathi OTT disruptor, now teetering between financial collapse and criminal scrutiny.

    As the courtroom script unfolds, Bardapurkar, once celebrated as a cultural entrepreneur now finds himself at the centre of a story where the plot revolves around liabilities, litigation, and law enforcement.

  • Soumya Vilekar announces her exit from Planet Marathi OTT

    Soumya Vilekar announces her exit from Planet Marathi OTT

    Mumbai: Soumya Vilekar, the co-founder of the first-ever Marathi OTT app – Planet Marathi has parted ways and announced her exit from the organisation. Soumya has been associated with the brand since 2017 and played a key role in the forming and execution of the entire app right from its inception to the stage it has reached at present.

    Planet Marathi as a brand was established in 2017 with a vision of creating a niche of Marathi films, arts and culture across the world map. The company forayed from film production after producing Marathi films like AB Aani CD, National award-winning Goshta EKa Paithanichi, and Chandramukhi to the streaming app business during pandemic.

    At present, the company is currently valued at approximately Rs 200 crores while the app has a robust user base of more than one million internationally present in 100 countries. The venture was seed-funded by Vistas Media Capital Company, based out of Singapore. Soumya Vilekar who has contributed largely towards building the organisation and its growth is now stepping down from her established role as a co-founder.

    Soumya and her son, Anitya Vilekar who served as directors of the organisation have resigned from the board of directors. While the compliances and statutory processes are going on, the effective date would be from 31 January 2024.

    Soumya Vilekar shared, “It has been an exciting journey with Planet Marathi over the years. Building the brand and the organization right from scratch was an interesting learning experience .Working with the  team, associates and everyone else in different projects for the entire tenure has been quite enriching. Besides being a Co-Founder and CFO, I also had the privilege of taking on various responsibilities and playing multiple roles similar to CXO as well. As this journey comes to an end, all I would say is that bigger things are in the offing. There is always a greater journey when one decides to be constantly in the process of creating new worlds. About moving forward, I will announce my next venture soon.”

    Post her exit, Soumya has ambitious plans for a new venture that will focus on a media-based SaaS platform along with several other initiatives on the technology front. Soumya Vilekar is a published author,  poet, entrepreneur & film producer. Additionally, she is in the field of powder metallurgy and holds a joint patent in the same. As a co-founder of Planet Marathi OTT, the world’s 1st exclusive Marathi over-the-top service, she aimed to take Marathi Entertainment to the global level. She is also the author of ‘The Mystic Journey’, ‘Life -Inspiration to Spiritualism’, & ‘Winds of Phillia’ , while her last book was ‘Suroor of the Soul’ .Her books have been listed on sites of “The Poetic Society” by TS Eliot, Wheelers – New Zealand & University bookshop Australia. Her involvement in the combination of art, literature and entertainment industry gives an impetus for for newer projects. She also holds a joint patent in metal powder manufacturing and heads the company of the same business.

    She also works in the field of women empowerment by being a vocal contributor and a digital changemaker at WORLDPULSE which is a global non-profit organisation based at Portland Oregon, connecting more than 50,000 women across 190 nations.