Sources close to the new Priyadarshan comedy Hungama 2 which premiered on Disney+ Hotstar on July 23, are blaming the current scandal in Shilpa Shetty’s life (her entrepreneur husband Raj Kundra’s alleged involvement with adult content) on the poor response to the film.

A source very close to the project told me, “It (the Kundra scandal) did affect the film’s performance. There was a campaign on social media to boycott the film. Disney+ Hotstar didn’t take it seriously. Or maybe they just ignored it in the hope that the film won’t get affected. But it did.”

Sources say Hungama 2 lost at least 15 percent viewership due to the arrest of Shilpa Shetty’s husband. It is ironical that her comeback to acting after 14 years was meant to be the USP of Hungama 2.

Now apparently the team behind Ms Shetty Kundra’s other comeback film Nikamma are running scared.

Sources say the film is complete. The producers Sony Pictures were waiting to see how Hungama 2 was received.Now that the verdict is clear, the release of Nikamma has been postponed indefinitely.

Significantly two talented young actors Meezan Jaffrey in Hungama 2 and Abhimanyu Dassani in Nikamma were hoping to make headway in their respective careers with the two Shilpa Shetty starrers. But God had other plans.

Also Read: UK Firm owned by Raj Kundra’s brother-in-law allegedly involved in pornography racket