Lyricist-turned-music director Praveen Bharadwaj has refused to work with Mahesh Bhatt, apparently because the film-maker is not paying him his fees.

Previously, Praveen has done films like Gunah (Hum ne tumko dil de diya), Intiha and Saaya with Vishash films. Dil chura liya from Saaya and Ab hamse akelaa raha jaye na from Imtiha were huge hits.

"After the recording of Saaya, he paid me an unmentionable amount. I just refused the payment. After that I wrote lyrics for a song each for his next two films," revealed Praveen, who has given lyrics to more then 100 films and 25 music albums.

"I charge a certain amount for my services. It may seem too high to some people, but those are my charges," he added. Industry insiders say Praveen charges second only to Javed Akhtar.