Rohit Arya’s Assistant Reveals How Mumbai Filmmaker Planned Hostage Drama to Protest Corruption

In a harrowing ordeal that blurred the lines between Bollywood fantasy and raw nightmare, 38-year-old short filmmaker Rohit Aarrya orchestrated a hostage crisis at his RA Studio in Mumbai's Powai on October 30, 2025, holding 17 teenagers—aged 14-16—along with two adults captive for over three hours. What began as auditions for a supposed web series titled Let’s Change 4 devolved into chaos when Aarrya, armed with an air gun, doused the premises with a petrol-rubber solution, and threatened self-immolation while demanding justice for alleged unpaid dues from the Maharashtra government. The standoff ended dramatically when Mumbai Police commandos stormed the building, shooting Aarrya—who succumbed to his injuries en route to Jogeshwari Trauma Care—rescuing all 19 unharmed in a swift 35-minute operation. At the heart of the probe is Rohan Aher, Aarrya's videographer and project coordinator of over a decade, whose recorded statement and crime-scene recreation on October 31 have peeled back layers of meticulous deception.

Aher, who first collaborated with Aarrya in 2012 on gigs with major TV channels like Zee and Colors—building unshakeable trust—reunited recently when Aarrya pitched a "short film on children's rebellion against corruption" requiring a staged kidnapping scene. "We were out of touch for a long time, but he called me recently and offered this assignment," Aher recounted, oblivious to the real peril. Unbeknownst to him, Aarrya had weaponized the ruse: he stockpiled snacks, water, and dry rations for a prolonged siege; repaired a faulty door latch to trap victims; installed motion sensors and custom CCTV feeds linked to his smartphone (bypassing pre-existing cameras); and even blacked out windows with taped child photos to simulate a film set. On October 29, Aarrya casually instructed Aher to procure five liters of petrol and firecrackers—framed as props—escalating alarms only when he ignited the flammable mix on the studio floor, forcing Aher to smash a glass door in vain rescue attempts.

The lure was irresistible for aspiring young actors: parents like Kolhapur farmer Sachin Jadhav received WhatsApp calls on October 25, approving his 15-year-old daughter—already a short-film veteran—for the gig. Accompanied by Jadhav's 77-year-old mother-in-law, Mangala Patankar, the children arrived daily from October 26, clocking in at 9 a.m. for "shoots" ending at 5 p.m., with structured lunch breaks fostering normalcy. "For three days, everything was fine," Patankar recalled, her quick thinking pivotal during the crisis: she herded most children into a locked room, rationing food and soothing their fears amid muffled cries. By Tuesday, red flags emerged—Aarrya shrouded windows citing "sunlight issues" and taped children's faces for the "kidnapping scene." At 1:50 p.m. on Thursday, as hunger set in, he dispatched a chilling video to parents declaring the "hostage" real, confining four with ropes and gags while brandishing his pistol at negotiators.

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Aarrya's grievances traced to a festering feud: as a self-proclaimed motivational speaker and acting coach from Pune (with family ties there), he accused the Maharashtra Education Department of pilfering his "Majhi Shala, Sundar Shala" (My School, Beautiful School) initiative—launched in 2020 for aesthetic school upgrades—implementing it statewide without crediting or compensating him, despite direct fund allocations. "He alleged money owed by the government wasn't paid," police sources noted, linking his solo protests' futility to this desperate amplification. Aher, trapped on a lower floor, pleaded via window with arriving officers, alerting them to the bound children and Aarrya's escalating threats—pistol aimed at kids before turning on the team—paving the way for the breach. Post-rescue, Aher's bandaged hand from the shattered glass underscored his heroism, as FIRs under Sections 364A (kidnapping for ransom) and 307 (attempt to murder) of the IPC were filed against the deceased.

This Powai pandemonium—Mumbai's first major hostage saga in 17 years—exposes vulnerabilities in the unregulated world of child auditions and freelance filmmaking, where dreams collide with delusion. With Aher aiding the probe and parents vowing trauma counseling, authorities probe deeper into Aarrya's finances and networks, ensuring such "reel-to-real" horrors remain confined to scripts.

Also Read: Mumbai Hostage Crisis: How 17 Kids were Lured into a Fake Audition Trap