Sonam shines at Cannes as Neerja faces trouble

WHILE SONAM KAPOOR posed in an Elie Saab couture that included diamonds from Chopard as she arrived for the screening of the film The Killing of a Sacred Deer at the 70th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, the family of flight purser Neerja Bhanot is contemplating legal action against the producers of Neerja for allegedly not honouring their commitment to share the ten per cent of collections made by the movie. The film had grossed an estimated Rs 125 crore in worldwide earnings and bagged the National Award for Best Hindi Feature Film, among several other film awards.

The Bhanot family is miffed that the producers, Bling Unplugged, run by fashion photographer Atul Kasbekar, did not honour their commitment to share 10 per cent of the box office collections with the Neerja Bhanot Trust and the family. “Neerja always said do your duty come what may and never tolerate injustice... this is what I can tell you at this stage,” Neerja’s brother Aneesh Bhanot said.

The film featured actress Sonam Kapoor in the lead role. Neerja, directed by Ram Madhvani, bagged the ‘Best Feature Film in Hindi’ award at the 64th National Film Awards this year. Just two days before her 23rd birthday, Neerja Bhanot gave up her life while trying to save the lives of passengers during a terrorist-hijack of a Pan-Am flight at Karachi international airport in Pakistan on September 5, 1986.

Neerja, who was the senior flight purser of Pan-Am 73 Bombay-Karachi-Frankfurt-New York flight, was killed in the shootout following the hijack. She was given the Ashoka Chakra, country’s highest peacetime gallantry award for bravery, in 1987, for her act of bravery and sacrifice.