Nora Fatehi in trouble over joke, faces Tk 3 crore lawsuit

Bollywood actress Nora Fatehi has landed in legal trouble after posting a video on social media in which she joked about a private chartered plane, calling it a "toy plane" and a "Lego plane." The operating company, Deones Aviation, has filed a civil defamation lawsuit against her seeking Rs 3 crore in damages.

The incident dates back to December last year when Nora had chartered a private aircraft from Deones Aviation for a trip from Mumbai to Jaipur. Finding the plane small in size, she recorded a video on her phone.

In the video, Nora is heard joking, calling the aircraft a "toy plane," "a small model," and a "Lego plane." She later posted the clip on Instagram. With over 4.5 crore followers, the video quickly went viral.

Deones Aviation alleged that Nora's comments led the public to perceive the aircraft as unsafe or unfit for passenger transport. The company claimed it suffered business losses, with bookings dropping by 15 to 20 percent after the video went viral. It also alleged that several flights began to get cancelled.

The company said the aircraft used by Nora was a Cessna Citation CJ2 model, a high-quality plane with the necessary government licences and clearance from India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation.

The company claimed that without verifying any facts, Nora had damaged its business and reputation. A civil defamation case has been filed against her in Gandhinagar court.

The lawsuit seeks Rs 3 crore in compensation, along with a demand to remove the video from Nora's social media accounts and to post a public apology.

The next hearing of the case is scheduled for September 25 before Senior Civil Judge R. Agarwal.