07 October,2026 07:57 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Navjot Gulati, Sushant Singh Rajput and Rhea Chakraborty. Pics via Instagram
Director Navjot Gulati has confirmed that real-life events surrounding Rhea Chakraborty influenced his film Pooja Meri Jaan, starring Mrunal Thakur, Huma Qureshi and Vikram Singh Chauhan. The filmmaker, however, clarified that the Sushant Singh Rajput case was not what prompted him to write the film.
Pooja Meri Jaan began streaming on ZEE5 on October 2, 2026, several years after it was completed. Following the trailer's release, viewers drew parallels between the film's storyline and the intense media scrutiny surrounding Chakraborty after Rajput died in 2020.
Speaking to Bollywood Hungama, Gulati explained that he had already started developing the film before Rajput's death. "No, because I started writing the film in April 2020, when Sushant Singh Rajput was still alive," he said.
However, the filmmaker acknowledged that the events involving Chakraborty subsequently influenced his approach. "Then, of course, I saw Rhea's media trial unfold every day, like the rest of us. And I did get inspired by what was happening to her. The witch hunt against her was wrong at every level," he added.
Gulati further explained that the case became relevant because real life appeared to mirror elements of the story he was already writing.
While the Sushant-Rhea case influenced aspects of the film, Gulati maintained that it was not the trigger for Pooja Meri Jaan. "If something I had already written was literally playing out in real life, then obviously I was going to take notes from it," he said.
The film was completed in 2022 and was originally expected to premiere on JioCinema. However, its release was delayed for several years before eventually arriving on ZEE5 this month.
The long wait had also led Gulati to publicly discuss his frustrations with the film's release. In an earlier interview with Variety India, he had criticised Maddock Films, the production house led by Dinesh Vijan, over the way smaller films were treated.
Gulati has now taken a more measured view of the film's eventual release. Asked about his equation with the producers, he said, "What matters now is that the film is out. They are the producers of the film, and it exists because of them."
He added that the conversation has finally shifted towards the film itself rather than the circumstances surrounding its delayed release. "People are now talking about the film rather than the journey behind its release, and that is what matters," he said. Pooja Meri Jaan is currently streaming on Zee5.
