Mumbai: Bollywood film stars and producers are in the grip of a terrifying extortion campaign unleashed by mafia dons who are threatening to kill them unless they pay huge amounts of money, police said.

Gangsters are known to have issued extortion threats to such film luminaries as legendary actor Amitabh Bachchan, super star Shahrukh Khan, current heartthrob Hrithik Roshan and his producer-director father, Rakesh Roshan.

Even film actresses Urmila Matondkar, Juhi Chawla, Manisha Koirala and Sonali Bendre have been targeted.

Police officials say they have provided bodyguards to all those who have been threatened. Last week criminals fired gunshots at well-known film producer-director Lawrence D'Souza at his North Mumbai office, but he escaped unhurt.

Police officials say the shots may have been deliberately fired away from D'Souza, as a warning after he did not respond to their extortion threats.

D'Souza gained popularity in Bollywood after directing a hit film called "Saajan", in the early 1990s.

"The attack on D'Souza has once again highlighted the mafia's growing menace to Bollywood," Pradeep Shinde, the head of Mumbai's police's anti-extortion unit said.

"Since June, gangsters seemed to have turned their eyes on Bollywood."

"These are some of those who have reported the threats. There are many who are afraid to register complaints."

Bollywood stars have been subject to threats from the underworld for a long time, but police say extortion demands are now being issued nearly every other day.

Shinde said some criminals, who recently broke away from top dons such as Dawood Ibrahim and Chota Rajan, had decided that Bollywood was a soft target.

"Now many new gangsters belonging to the erstwhile gangs are attempting to make quick bucks. They, however, do not know that the film industry is in the doldrums, with money virtually disappearing," he said.

It has been nearly six months since Bollywood produced a cash-spinner and over 150 films have flopped during this lean patch.

Nevertheless, the glamour surrounding the film stars has attracted the criminals. Mumbai police this year killed gangsters who were allegedly planning to murder popular film producer and actor Aamir Khan and director Ashutosh Gowarikar.

Both of them were then in the United States for the Oscar awards where their film "Lagaan", was nominated in the best foreign film category.

Fears about the mafia receded during the late 1990s after the dreaded gangster, Abu Saleem, shifted to the United Arab Emirates when police killed a number of his top men.

But the rumours are that Saleem, who is infamous for extorting the Mumbai film industry and the prime suspect in the killing of producer Gulshan Kumar in 1997, is back on the prowl in India.

His top aides, as well as other mafia dons, are spreading panic in the industry, another police official said.

The deep involvement of mafia in Bollywood was highlighted last year when one of the country's biggest film producers, Bharat Shah, was arrested for his underworld links in film financing. He was released on bail recently.

Shah has produced the latest Bollywood offering, "Devdas", the costliest movie ever to be made in India at a cost of Rs 500 million ($ 10.2 million).