By: Entertainment DeskNew Delhi | September 17, 2025 01:12 PM IST 4 min readMuzammil Ibrahim speaks against Pooja Bhatt. (Photo: Muzammil Ibrahim/Pooja Bhatt/Instagram)Muzammil Ibrahim, a model from Kashmir, made a name for himself in the fashion industry after his win at the Gladrags Manhunt Contest in 2003. He did about 1500 runway shows when he was approached for music videos. After his music video “Pardesiya” with Rakhi Sawant became a hit, he was graduated to movies. Four years later, at the age of 21, Muzammil decided to make his Bollywood debut with Pooja Bhatt’s directorial film Dhokha. However, that experience was scarring, claimed Muzammil.In an interview with Hindi Rush, Muzammil recalled acting in Dhokha, which led to years of trauma. He said: “I had not experienced a toxic environment before. I was not used to cuss words. It was a very traumatic experience for me. And working in that environment was even more difficult. Despite all the torture, I didn’t have any option because I was the only breadwinner of my family, after I called them all to Mumbai from Kashmir, given the instability in the region.”He added, “I used to be extremely frustrated that I was unable to oppose that behaviour due to my responsibilities. It almost kills me to have gone through that and not being able to talk about it just because they are powerful people.”While it was a Mukesh Bhatt production film, Muzammil clarified that his director was the only troublemaker on set. “Only the director made me suffer. The team, however, was great. Bhatt sahab had offered me about three films after Dhokha, but because of my previous experience on set… I didn’t take up any of that.”His fear also made him say no to Raaz 2, despite knowing it was being shot by Mohit Suri and not Pooja Bhatt. However, it backfired at him.ALSO READ | Payal Rohatgi pens note about ‘betrayal’, shares stories about ‘knowing your worth’ amid reports of husband Sangram Singh’s affair with Nikita Rawal“When I said no to films, they tried to sabotage my image. My director (Pooja Bhatt) had arranged a media assassination against me and had shared rumours about me. She played woman card to put me down. Her attitude was that: ‘Actor should be like a dog. If I ask you to sit, you sit, if I ask you to stand, you stand.’ She was very immature. I don’t know what made her behave like that, but today I am the same age as she was during the making of Dhokha, and I know that if today, I will have to deal with a 20-year-old, I will treat them with care.”Story continues below this adHe further commented on the partiality he had to experience on the set of Dhokha. “She never considered outsiders as kids. They called me ‘mard’. However, for Bhatt sahab she was the kid. I didn’t understand the logic. She was 20 years older. For them, their kids are kids irrespective of their behaviour and age, but if we end up doing a mistake, we become the culprit,” he alleged.He then revealed that despite Pooja Bhatt is credited for helming the project, it was Mahesh Bhatt who directed it. “The entire film was mostly shot by Mahesh Bhatt. When he was there on set, I wouldn’t suffer much. The problems happened during his absence, especially during song sequences and actions, because he wouldn’t take interest and she directed them.”Muzammil said that Pooja tried to break him because he didn’t bend according to her. “They try to break the confidence of the outsider. They want us to be their sycophants, but I refused to do so. I didn’t bend, neither did I break and eventually went through the consequences. They published several articles against me to sabotage my career. They tried to create a perception against me like ‘he is hard to work with’ and ‘has attitude’. It actually worked for them.”This left a lasting impact on the actor and his family.Story continues below this ad“It scared me. It was very torturous and mentally draining time. The experience triggered insomnia. I still suffer from it.”In between, Muzammil had also made headlines for dating Deepika Padukone.Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.© IE Online Media Services Pvt LtdTags:Pooja Bhatt