'I am yet to be paid for 'K. Street…' - Aly Khan lashes back

The insecurities, hectic pace and round-the-clock happenings of Indian television have had their toll on one more actor. But evicted from Ekta Kapoor's K. Street, Pali Hill, Aly Khan is not taking it lying down. Vickey Lalwani caught up with the livid actor: "I am flabbergasted that I have been removed from K. Street, Pali Hill without anyone bothering to inform me. I was busy getting ready on a shoot when some insignificant person from the sets came over and broke the news to me. I immediately called up the production people but none of them were ready to even take my call. Either my calls were being disconnected or going unanswered. These same guys used to call up at least 15 times a day when we were shooting at brisk progress," he goes red. Calm down, Aly. Could we have the full story please? "It all stems from the fact that Hansal Mehta was replaced by Gary Bhinder. Hansal had his own style and perhaps he was a bit slow. But we shot with him for one full month. When Gary took over, we thought that he would continue from where Hansal had left off. But he was asked to reshoot the entire thing. So plainly speaking, we found ourselves running far behind the planned schedule. The telecast date was drawing closer and we wouldn't have a sufficient bank. Now, I had to leave for Dubai for the Item Bomb show, followed by a stint in Goa where I had to report for a new show 'Guns and Roses'. I couldn't back out from my earlier commitments which they well knew of. But some days before I left, I gave them long, extra hours. And when I came back...," he trails off. Are you there? We aren't through yet. A long pause and he mumbles softly, "Tell me." He isn't telling us one thing. That he is getting married to a beautiful girl from Pakistan. Chandni, isn't it? They fell in love in February this year when Aly went for one of Jagjit Singh's shows. At last he smiles, "Yes. We are tying the knot on 5 October. Think of it, they even knew about that. Perhaps they thought that my 10-day break for which I had told them about, would hamper the progress of the show. Teething problems, these. But if Hansal wouldn't have been replaced, things wouldn't have gone haywire," he concludes. What was the reaction of your co-actors? "No reaction. This television industry is full of selfish people. Considering the fact that I was one of most senior guys who had been offered the highest fee, there was some jealousy within the camp." Sensitive question. Excuse us. Have you been paid? "Not a single paisa as yet. I requested them to clear my dues by the last day, but to no avail. I am waiting. I hope my amount will be cleared soon. A lot of things were haywire. Even the promos had to be reshot because Star Plus did not like the ones which were done originally. This is grossly unprofessional. Anyway, dekha jaye to main kya kar sakta hoon? I have been true to myself. I even did the patch work for two days after I was told that I am out," he concludes with a sigh. Rahul Dev's brother, Mukul Dev (of Gharwali Uparwali fame), has replaced Aly Khan. K Street Pali Hill , which stars Vikram Kapadia, Riituu Raaj, Dimple Hirji, Iraavati Harshe, Nivedita Bhattacharya and Ashwini is the latest offering from Ekta Kapoor's stable. It replaced Kaahin Kissii Roz from 27 September. Will Mukul be a good substitute for the talented Aly? Wait and watch.