Financial Turbulence at CINTAA: Upasana Singh Levels Serious Allegations Over Rs 90 Lakh in Fixed Deposits

The Cine and Television Artistes’ Association (CINTAA)—an institution that serves as the backbone for thousands of actors in the Indian entertainment industry—is currently embroiled in a high-stakes internal power struggle. The latest salvo comes from former office-bearer Upasana Singh, who has levelled explosive allegations regarding the unauthorized access of the association’s financial assets, specifically pointing to approximately Rs 90 lakh held in fixed deposits.

The Mystery of the ‘Frozen’ Accounts

The controversy centers on a fundamental dispute over who has the authority to manage CINTAA’s coffers. According to Singh, the previous committee took proactive steps to protect the organization’s treasury during the transition period between leadership regimes. She claims that all five banks where CINTAA maintains accounts and fixed deposits were formally instructed to keep the funds frozen until a new committee could be legally and transparently established.

“We have FDs in five banks and accounts in five banks,” Singh told IANS in a recent interview. “When our committee was dissolved, Deepak Parashar was the treasurer. We informed all the banks that the committee had been dissolved and that the accounts should remain frozen until a new committee formally took charge.”

Singh’s contention is that this “freeze” was a safeguard—a necessary legal wall intended to prevent any misappropriation of funds while the association’s leadership was in flux. However, she alleges that this wall was breached before the dust had even settled on the new committee’s mandate.

Allegations of Procedural Malpractice

The core of Singh’s complaint is not just that money was moved, but that it was done without the oversight or consent of the members. She argues that breaking a fixed deposit of this magnitude requires a level of transparency and collective approval that she claims was entirely absent in this instance.

“It is such a big issue because if you want to break the FDs of any institution, you have to ask the members first,” Singh asserted. “How can they break the FDs?”

When probed about how such a move could be executed if the accounts were legally frozen, Singh pointed toward a breakdown in administrative integrity. She alleges that the office staff, acting as conduits, were instrumental in bypassing security protocols. By presenting the association’s official stamps, email credentials, and physical office location, those involved allegedly managed to perform a new “know your customer” (KYC) verification with the banks, effectively overriding the previous freeze.

High-Profile Names in the Crosshairs

The allegations have turned personal, as Singh has explicitly named prominent industry figures—specifically Poonam Dhillon, Padmini Kolhapure, and Paintal—as being involved in the process of re-accessing these accounts.

Singh claims that these individuals presented themselves to the banks as the rightful representatives of CINTAA, using their status to influence the opening of accounts that were meant to stay locked. “They took Paintal saab, Poonam, and Padmini and told the bank, ‘This is our stamp, this is our email ID, and this is our office.’ The staff was also there and showed the bank that this was their office,” Singh alleged.

She further challenged the legitimacy of the group, questioning their authority to act on behalf of the association: “When you are not holding any position and you are not the general secretary, how can you say that you are the general secretary? They declared themselves as the committee.”

A Missing Rs 90 Lakh?

The financial gravity of these claims cannot be understated. With Rs 90 lakh reportedly tied up in these fixed deposits, the potential for long-term damage to the association’s welfare activities is significant. Singh maintains that the funds were moved through a series of transactions, and the current committee remains in the dark regarding the final destination of these assets.

“The money was transferred in different ways,” she stated. “We don’t know how many FDs have been broken because we have around Rs 90 lakh there.”

This ongoing saga of governance and fiscal control has created a climate of uncertainty for CINTAA members. What was supposed to be a representative body for actors has increasingly become a stage for courtroom-style battles and accusations of financial impropriety.

The Other Side of the Story

It is important to note that these allegations do not exist in a vacuum. Poonam Dhillon and Padmini Kolhapure have consistently denied all accusations brought against them by Singh and her cohort. In previous public interactions—including a notable press conference in August—Dhillon and Kolhapure rejected claims of financial mismanagement, framing their actions as necessary steps to ensure the association continues to function.

Specifically, in September, both actresses publicly addressed the state of the frozen accounts, arguing that the freezing of funds was, in fact, the real culprit behind the association’s struggles, as it prevented the payment of staff salaries and the distribution of welfare funds.

As of early October 2026, the silence from the side of the current leadership regarding Singh’s specific claims about the “breaking” of fixed deposits suggests that this war of words is far from over. For now, the claims remain firmly in the realm of allegations. However, the intensity of the standoff suggests that the resolution to CINTAA’s leadership crisis may eventually be found not in boardrooms, but in legal investigations.

For the members of CINTAA, the hope remains that the association’s resources—intended to provide a safety net for artists—will be shielded from the crossfire of this internal conflict. Until a clear, transparent audit is provided, the industry will continue to watch with bated breath to see where the money has gone and who truly holds the keys to CINTAA’s future.

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