Why Anupamaa star Rupali Ganguly filed a Rs 50 Cr defamation suit against stepdaughter

TV actress Rupali Ganguly, who first shot to fame by playing the naive daughter-in-law in Sarabhai vs Sarabhai and later became the TV soap queen with Anupamaa, has found herself in an ugly spat with her stepdaughter.

Ganguly's stepdaughter, Esha Verma, in an Instagram post, accused the television actress of being a bully.

"I stood up against my bullies. My true bullies in my life. Not only did they hurt someone who I truly love - my mother; they chose to hurt me. They chose not to acknowledge me. They chose to abandon me, criticise me, and pick on my insecurities so I wouldn't feel good about myself. They never apologised to me, either publicly or personally. What hurt me the most was the response from my own father, how he chose to mock mental health," Verma had said in the Instagram post.

However, she has since deleted the video and made her Instagram account private.

This came after Rupali Ganguly issued a defamation notice to her stepdaughter, demanding compensation of Rs 50 crore. She accused Esha of allegedly "maligning" her character and personal life.

"Our client states that she was shocked to see the posts and comments published by you on various social media platforms including Twitter (now X), Instagram, and Facebook. Our client states that it is apposite to put the true and correct facts leading to the issuance of the present notice," the legal notice read, according to reports.

It also stated that Ganguly endured mental stress due to her stepdaughter's statements and faced humiliation on set.

In an interview with Bollywood Bubble, Esha had levelled serious allegations against Ganguly and her father Ashwin Verma. "Rupali physically hit my mother in person in Mumbai," she told the publication. "It was Rupali who told my father to give my mother the divorce papers," Esha revealed.

Last week, Ashwin posted on X saying he only wanted the best for his children and that there were challenges between him and his second wife.

"I do have two daughters from previous relationships, something Rupali and I have always been open about that I care a great deal about. I understand that my younger daughter still holds a lot of hurt about the dissolution of her parent's relationship as divorce is a difficult experience that can greatly affect and harm the children of that marriage."

Ashwin married Ganguly in 2013 and they are parents to a son.