Neetu Chandra

Bhojpuri Dabangg has earned the wrath of Neetu Chandra by scorning her offer to be its brand ambassador and choosing Rinku Ghosh instead.

Bhojpuri Dabangg, which defeated Chennai Rhinos in the first match in the Celebrity Cricket League, already has two brand ambassadors — Bhojpuri actors Urvashi Chaudhary and Shubhi Sharma. Pakhi Hegde is the face of the team.

Bollywood actor and producer, Neetu, is cut up with the rejection. “Who is she (Rinku Ghosh)? I haven’t even heard her name,” she told The Telegraph on Friday.

She added that despite the many laurels she has earned for the state, the rejection has hurt her deeply.

“I was the first girl from Bihar to represent India in taekwondo at the International Taekwondo Championship in Hong Kong. I was the first girl from Bihar to act in a Greek film. But some people in the state do not respect my achievements.”

Neetu added that she had approached the team and offered to be its brand ambassador. “But there was no response to my offer.”

Team owner and captain Manoj Tiwari, however, had a different story. On his way to Hyderabad where Bhojpuri Dabangg will play Kerala Strikers on Saturday, Manoj said: “In December last year, I had approached Neetu and asked her to be our brand ambassador. She told me to ask my manager to call her. I did not like her response. We are not making a film that we need to involve our managers.”

Asked why he chose Rinku, who is from Calcutta, Manoj said: “Rinku is a very good artiste. People from other states have made their mark in our industry. No one is forbidden from working in the Bhojpuri film industry. If you love our language and our films, you are welcome to work.”

Despite Neetu’s public expression of anger, Manoj invited her to join the team in Ranchi where it would play Veer Marathi on February 24.

“I want Neetu to be the brand ambassador of Bhojpuri Dabangg,” said Manoj. “She is a very talented and well-known actor. We have many brand ambassadors. I would like to request Neetu to join us in Ranchi for the next match.”

The new member of this glamorous team, Rinku, was unperturbed by the storm that had broken around her. “I deserve to be what I am no matter what anyone else feels because of my fame,” she said. Rinku, who made her debut opposite Ravi Kissen in the 2003 flick Suhagan Bana De Sajna Hamar, has acted in more than a 100 Bhojpuri films.