Shilpa Shetty breaks silence on Bastian closure rumors and ‘negative PR’ surrounding Raj Kundra

5 min readMumbaiFeb 26, 2026 12:11 PM Over the past six months, Shilpa Shetty and her husband Raj Kundra have frequently found themselves in the headlines. From allegations of a scam to reports about the closure of her premium and widely popular restaurant Bastian, the couple has faced intense public scrutiny. Yet, in a recent conversation with Curly Tales, Shilpa maintained that the noise has not shaken her. She emphasized that she has been deeply and personally involved in building the restaurant brand and continues to stand the integrity of her work.
‘My name has become like clickbait’
Speaking about the pressures of constant public attention, she reflected on how people can sometimes attempt to pull others down, but said she remains committed to her values. “It’s a very difficult path to constantly be in the public eye. And there is something called “nazar”, we always discuss it. When you’re constantly being discussed and talked about, it’s such a competitive field, and people can go to any lengths, unfortunately. We’re not that sort. I’m of the belief that there’s enough room for everyone to succeed.”
When asked how the recent wave of news coverage has impacted her personally, Shilpa admitted that it does affect her, but only to a point. “It’s sad. I believe we’ve always stood our ground. As a company and as people, we’re known for our integrity. Like you asked me previously, does it hurt you? How do you deal with it? I’m human. There are many times I sit and think, why aren’t we talking about the good stuff? Why is it that we’re only picking on these things? But I think as a celebrity, the unfortunate part is that my name has become like clickbait. So I’ve taken it in my stride.”
‘Never complain, Never explain’
She added that, ultimately, integrity is what resonates with people, and that is why the brand continues to thrive. “But people are very smart. They know how to segregate right from wrong. And we’re still thriving, we’re working, and the brand is working because it appeals to them. We’re giving them what they want.” Shilpa also spoke about the moment she chose to address social media speculation regarding Bastian’s alleged shutdown. Typically, she avoids clarifying rumours, but this time, she felt compelled to speak up, not for herself, but for the brand.
“I’ve never sought to explain because I believe as an actor or a celebrity, you should never complain, never explain. So I maintained stoic silence. But this time it was about a brand, a brand we’ve put so much love, passion, and effort into. There was something in the offing, and it wasn’t the right time for me to announce it. But I had to take to social media. And the PR we gained out of it, people thought it was bad PR, but you can’t build that kind of PR, for the love of money. We actually got that PR organically.”
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Addressing whether the negative attention affected the brand’s prospects, Ranjit, the original founder of Bastian, who was seated alongside Shilpa during the interview, responded with a laugh: “Not at all. Any kind of publicity is good publicity. ” Shilpa further added: “Even in negative PR, there’s always a positive takeaway because we’re both very positive in terms of our mindset. ”Story continues below this ad
Earlier in the same conversation, she fondly recalled the first time she walked into Bastian as a customer in 2016. That visit would eventually mark the beginning of a long-standing professional partnership. “I am so happy Ranjit and I met. I met him in Bastian when I came there as a customer in 2016. That’s when we started talking, and he told me he was opening another outlet in Worli, which also went on to become an iconic place. But I want to share the story behind it,  I was not convinced at all because that location was just a barren space back then. He was simply convinced that he would turn it into a top-running restaurant. We opened during Covid, but that’s where the brand Bastian truly took shape. Today, we have eight restaurants across four different brands under Bastian.”