Bahraini Sheikh in court over ‘£35 million’ deal to meet Bollywood stars

LONDON: A wealthy Bahraini sheikh has told London's High Court he was "astonished" to learn he was being sued over an alleged £35 million deal for meetings with 26 Bollywood actors during “public encounters”.

Sheikh Hamad Isa Ali Al Khalifa, who belongs to Bahraini royal family, allegedly entered into a contract with Egyptian entrepreneur Ahmed Adel Abdallah Ahmed to pay for meetings with 26 leading lights of Bollywood.

During the start of the trial here at the London High Court, Al Khalifa told the court he trusted Mr Ahmed "as a friend" and never considered him to be a business associate, denying ever entering into an agreement with him.

During cross-examination by Mr Ahmed's lawyers, Sheikh Hamad said: "We developed this friendship together and I liked him."

The Egyptian businessman is suing the sheikh for £6 million he says he is owed in fees and costs for arranging meetings with Bollywood stars. He claims that, through his firm CBSC Events & Exhibition and Conference Organisers, he was hired by Sheikh Hamad to provide exclusive access to stars in an environment that "replicated a social encounter".

The sheikh denies making any such agreement and says he understood he had a "genuine bond of friendship" with Mr Ahmed.

In his witness statement, the sheikh said he paid Mr Ahmed about £2.7 million for meetings with his idols in the Indian film industry, but that he did so "because he wanted to please him".

He said he has an "addictive personality" which includes "people-pleasing", and is predisposed to making people happy – including by giving them "cash or expensive gifts".

He said: "When I learned of the claims that Mr Ahmed was making against me in these proceedings, I was astonished.

"I was grateful to (Mr Ahmed) for helping me to meet four top Bollywood artists. I expressed my gratitude frequently by words and my gestures: in total, he received around GBP2.7 million from me in relation to these meetings. Even based on what he had told me, I considered this sum was comfortably in excess of the amount that he had incurred in costs and expenses, including in fees for the Bollywood artists. At the time, I had given [Mr Ahmed] this money because I wanted to please him and I saw how happy it made him to receive it. However, I do not think that this gives him licence to demand vast sums of money to which he is not entitled."

The court previously heard the two men were introduced by Sheikh Hamad's uncle in 2015, shortly after the death of the sheikh's father.

Sheikh Hamad said he has a "lifelong passion" for Bollywood cinema and wanted to meet stars including Shah Rukh Khan, Ranveer Singh, Slumdog Millionaire star Anil Kapoor and Aishwarya Rai. He went on to meet Aditya Roy Kapoor, Salman Khan, and Ranveer Singh.

Mr Ahmed claims that, during a phone conversation when Sheikh Hamad was in London in January 2016, the pair made an "oral agreement" that he would be paid more than GBP1 million for each meeting, plus a bonus of more than GBP350,000 after every third meeting.

Sheikh Hamad contends the alleged arrangement is "entirely fictitious" and is asking the court to reject the claim.

Sheikh al-Khalifa is a cousin of the billionaire king of Bahrain and nephew of the country’s deputy prime minister. Ahmed Adel Abdallah Ahmed is suing the sheikh claiming that he pulled out of the deal after handing over just $3m. Ahmed is suing for breach of contract and $20.9m in damages.

Ahmed’s lawyers claimed that the Sheikh arrived for the meeting with Shah Rukh Khan at a five-star hotel in Mumbai on 16 January 2016 with $400,000 in cash. Two days later the sheikh is claimed to have given Ahmed the balance of his fee in a “dark grey Samsonite suitcase” filled with £600,000 and $250,000 in cash. A photo of the suitcase filled with case was submitted to the court as evidence. According to court papers, most of the meetings took place at the St Regis Hotel in Mumbai.

The hearing, before Mr Justice Jacobs, continues.