'Baseless allegations': 'Laapataa Ladies' writer on plagiarism controversy
What's the story
Biplab Goswami, the writer of the acclaimed drama Laapataa Ladies, has responded to the recent plagiarism allegations against the makers.
The Hindi-language film has been accused of copying from a 2019 Arabic short film, Burqa City.
Speaking to Zoom, Goswami clarified that the story for Laapataa Ladies was registered in 2014, long before its script was even written.
Laapataa Ladies was directed by Kiran Rao, while Burqa City was helmed by Fabrice Bracq.
Denial
Goswami expressed frustration over the allegations
Goswami said, "First of all, I was not aware of the allegations hence, my statement came out late."
"We are in a phase where people have something to comment without having proper information about the topic."
"I felt bad about this. I was even hurt and angry at what was happening. But these allegations of plagiarism and copying are baseless."
Call for clarity
Goswami called for direct communication amid allegations
Goswami called for direct communication in the face of such allegations.
He said, "I felt at that time that accusers should have reached out to me or Kiran ji or anyone from the team of Laapataa Ladies."
"Nobody reached out to us for clarification."
"Aisa nahi hai ki social media ke through kisiko reach out nahi kar sakte. It's easy."
The film, released in 2023, is led by Nitanshi Goel, Pratibha Ranta, and Sparsh Shrivastava.