“Heavens Won't Fall”: Court Pauses Netflix Docuseries On Indrani Mukerjea

Mumbai:

The release of a Netflix documentary on Indrani Mukerjea, a former media boss accused of murdering her 25-year-old daughter, has been stalled for now. The Bombay High Court has told Netflix to organise a screening of “The Indrani Mukerjea Story: Buried Truth” for officials of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is investigating the Sheena Bora murder case. The documentary was to release tomorrow.

The court has now asked Netflix to organise a special screening that will be attended by CBI officials and lawyers. The matter will be heard next Thursday, meaning the docuseries is not releasing this month.

Earlier, the CBI had requested the court to stall the documentary’s screening till the trial in the murder case is complete. A division bench of Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Justice Manjusha Deshpande today asked makers of the documentary if they can organise a screening for the CBI.

“Why should the CBI not be allowed to see the series. What is the difficulty in sharing the docuseries?” the court asked. It noted that like an accused, the prosecution and victim in a case have rights too.

Senior Advocate Ravi Kadam, who appeared for Netflix, initially opposed the screening and said it would amount to pre-censorship. He also said the CBI should have approached the court earlier.

But the court said the trial was still on. “It (release) can be deferred for a week… Heavens are not going to fall,” the court said.

Mr Kadam said the court can also view the series if it wishes to. The bench quipped that it does not have the time. The Netflix counsel then made a statement that the documentary will not be released before the next hearing. He also told the court that five witnesses in the case have been interviewed for the series. These include Indrani’s son Mikhail and Vidhie Mukerjea, her daughter from her second husband Peter Mukerjea.

Earlier, a special court had rejected the CBI’s request to stop the release of the docuseries.

Sheena Bora was allegedly strangled to death in a car by Indrani, her then driver Shyamvar Rai and former husband Sanjeev Khanna in April 2012. Sheena was Indrani’s daughter from a previous relationship.

The murder came to light in 2015 after the driver, Shyamvar Rai, spoke about it following his arrest in another case. Indrani was arrested in 2015 and granted bail in 2022. The other accused, including Shyamvar Rai, Sanjeev Khanna and Peter Mukerjea, are also out on bail.