The Pali Hill Residents Association has made a police complaint against actor Imran Khan for creating a racket almost every night driving around the neighbourhood in his Ferrari.
The verbal complaint was made on Friday afternoon after Imran ignored multiple appeals made to him by the residents. The complaint said that Imran sets out in his Ferrari between midnight and 2 am almost every night and the roar of the car is so loud that it jolts people out of their sleep.
Cops warn actor, who denies the charges and claims he is paying the price for being a celebrity.The complaint brings into focus on the one hand the concerns of residents about the rising noise levels in residential areas known once for their calm and quiet, and on the other the frustrations of the owners of supercars jostling for road space with sputtering autos and wheezing trucks and buses.
Pali Hill Residents Association secretary Madhu Poplai said it's been around six months now that Imran's late-night drives have become a headache. "Despite repeated messages and requests to the actor, there has been no change. We had no option other than approaching the police," she said.
The Khar police station, where the complaint was made, called Imran on Friday and told him about the residents' complaint. "He was warned that if the residents complained again, we will be compelledto initiate action against him," Senior Inspector Dattatray Bhargude said.
Imran, according to police sources, denied the residents' charge and said that he has not taken his Ferrari out of his garage for three months. "I have an eight-month-old daughter and I would be foolish to do anything of this sort as this would disturb her also. None of my neighbours have come to me with such a thing nor did anyone send me a message. Moreover my car is parked at my uncle's place. There are hundreds of sports car in Pali Hill and if police can prove it is me then I would be happy to accept it. I am open to investigation." Residents, however, say they have been tracking the Ferrari for nearly six months and are convinced that it belongs to Imran and that he is also behind the wheel when it roars through the neighbourhood. The redand-black car, residents say, goes through the Nargis Dutt road towards the Carter Road and comes up back from the Rizvi College lane to Imran's 24 Pali Hill bungalow.
From RTO records, the residents have found out that only two other persons in the neighbourhood own a Ferrari - Sanjay Dutt and developer Baba Diwan. While Dutt is in Yerwada jail, Baba Diwan, who was a resident of Pali Hill for many years, has now moved to another part of Bandra.
One of the residents, who stays in a housing society adjoining actor Rishi Kapoor's bunglow Krishnaraj, in fact, went to Imran's residence to request him personally. "For a few days the car was not taken out for a spin, but then the nuisance starts again. It becomes irritating when that rumbling sound disturbs your sleep," he said.
Dr Amitav Shukla, chairman, Pali Hill Residents Association, said the residents have no intention to target any individual. "Celebrities should know rules governing noise levels and should think about their neighbours. There are lot of elderly people in Pali Hill. This has to stop at any cost," he said.
