Vashu Bhagnani Reveals Coolie No. 1 Led To Rs 27 Crore Loss; Claims Varun Dhawan 'Never Bothered To Check'

Producer Vashu Bhagnani has claimed that the Varun Dhawan-starrer Coolie No. 1 left him facing losses of nearly Rs. 27 crore. Bhagnani also alleged that he was only a “namesake producer” on the film and stated that Varun Dhawan “never bothered to check” how much money had been lost.

Speaking to Bollywood Hungama, Bhagnani said he made a huge financial commitment to the project but did not control spending. The producer said director David Dhawan handled production completely, while Bhagnani only funded the film. He also linked these losses to a wider dispute involving songs and earlier work on Biwi No. 1.

Vashu Bhagnani on Coolie No. 1 losses and producer role

Bhagnani recalled telling David Dhawan that he wished to collaborate again on Biwi No 1 and then spoke about the later film Coolie No. 1. He said, “I told David ji that I want to make Biwi No 1. We suffered a loss of around Rs. 27 crores in Coolie No 1.”

Describing the arrangement, Bhagnani claimed that David Dhawan was fully in charge behind the scenes. Bhagnani said, “It was David ji who 100% handled the production and expenses. I paid David ji big money to make that film; almost Rs. 70 crores, which was not even his worth.”

Vashu Bhagnani, Coolie No. 1 and the 'Chunari Chunari’ song row

Bhagnani said David Dhawan had assured that the money lost on Coolie No. 1 would get recovered later. The producer then shifted to the earlier attempt to mount Biwi No. 1 with Rohit Dhawan. According to Bhagnani, work went on for almost six months before Rohit Dhawan informed him that the script was still not ready.

Bhagnani alleged that three months after that update, he learnt Ramesh Taurani and David Dhawan had moved ahead on the film separately. Remembering that time, Bhagnani said, “I felt a little bad, but then I realized that I can't stop them. One year later, I saw 'Chunari Chunari' was a part of that film. I called David Dhawan and asked them, 'How can you do this?'"

He questioned how the song could appear elsewhere when he had already sold Biwi No. 1 audio rights to Tips. Discussing the later reuse of 'Chunari Chunari’ in the Varun Dhawan-led Coolie No. 1, Bhagnani told the portal, “Wog log badmaashi karke video chala rahe the. They were not even ready to meet us over this issue. We shared a letter in the court, due to which the court granted us status quo. How can David Dhawan use the same songs from our film in his son's movie, that too for a Ramesh Taurani production?”

Bhagnani said the matter raised questions about professional conduct in the Hindi film industry. He stressed that there should be clear ethics when old material is reused. Returning to the financial hit from Coolie No. 1, Bhagnani added, “Varun never even bothered to check ki uncle ka nuksaan hua hai; kaun poora karega?”