Days after an FIR was lodged against actress Puja Banerjee and her husband, actor Kunal Verma, for kidnapping a filmmaker and extorting money from him, the actress finally ended her silence and penned a note on social media, calling the accusations "lies".

Puja took to her Instagram handle on Friday and wrote, "Going through the toughest time of our lives, those who are standing by us we will be forever grateful to you all. And those who believe in the lies spread against us god bless them too. I believe in God and u know GOD IS WATCHING (sic)."

Why was FIR lodged against Puja, Kunal?

Earlier this month, Bengali film producer Shyam Sunder Dey accused Puja and Kunal of kidnapping him in Goa and extorting Rs 23 lakh from him. He stated that Puja was like a "sister" to him and that he was shocked when she and Kunal threatened him for money.

He accused Kunal and other men thrashing him in front of Puja, and added that they even took his phones away. However, they kept one phone near him so that he could transfer the money that they demanded.

Dey said that using the spare phone, he sent his location to his wife and also secretly recorded a video in the bathroom and sent it across to her. "When they began pressing me to sign property papers, I realised this had gone too far," he said.

Dey was rescued from Goa on June 4 after his wife reached out to the police and lodged a complaint. Puja and Kunal were then booked under several sections of the BNS including those for abduction, extortion, criminal intimidation and wrongful confinement.