Income Tax Department raids top film producers in Chennai

Reports state that officials from the Income Tax Department have conducted sudden raids at properties of top Tamil film producers. The list of film producers being raided reportedly includes big names like Kalaipuli S Thanu of Kalaipuli Films International, Gnanavel Raja of Studio Green, S R Prabhu of Dream Warrior Pictures, and Anbu Chezhiyan of Gopuram Films. At least forty premises connected to film financier Anbu Chezhiyan have allegedly been raided. 

Anbu Chezhiyan, who hails from Madurai, is well known as a financier in the Tamil film industry. He recently produced the Vijay Sethupathi starrer Aandavan Kattalai in 2016. Reportedly, the IT department has sent a notice to all the producers who borrowed money from financier Anbu Chezhiyan. 

The production houses connected to these producers are currently involved in big-budget titles like Captain Miller starring Dhanush, Pathu Thala with Simbhu, Vaadivaasal with Suriya, and Vikram’s untitled film Chiyaan 61 along with Oke Oka Jeevitham, Bhola, and Suriya 43.

Insider reports suggest that the surprise raid has shocked many in the Industry and could potentially affect films currently undergoing production. While the affected parties are currently unable to comment, details regarding the outcome of the raid are yet to emerge.