A court here granted anticipatory bail to film director Madhur Bhandarkar, who is facing charges of raping and threatening to kill model-turned-actress Preeti Jain.

Principal judge R.R. Vachha said: "In the event Bhandarkar is arrested by Mumbai Police, he should be released on a bail of Rs.20,000 with one or two sureties of the same amount."

He directed Bhandarkar to report to the Versova police station regularly and not leave the limits of Mumbai until investigations were complete.

Bhandarkar said: "I had spoken to Preeti (Jain) about a role in my upcoming film but since that did not happen, she filed a complaint alleging rape."

Jain countered that "Bhandarkar cannot get away with what he did so easily.

"I have cell phone bills and residence documents to prove my association with Bhandarkar," she said. Jain, in her complaint to the police, alleged that Bhandarkar and she "had sex 16 times between 1999 and 2004.

"Madhur had promised to give me a lead role in his films. However, he didn't offer me a lead role in any of his movies. At times when I refused, he raped me," she said.

Bhandarkar had made three films since 1999 -- "Chandni Bar", "Satta" and "Aan", and Jain said she had no role in any of them.

"Bhandarkar's forthcoming movie, 'Page 3', also does not feature me," she said. Jain further alleged that Bhandarkar had promised to marry her and make her a star.

"I had come to Mumbai to enter films five years ago," said Jain.