Scriptwriter Suchita Bhatia has alleged that Yash Raj Films used her story titled Osama – A Love Story to make its film, New York, which is seeing reasonable commercial success.
Bhatia said she met Yash Raj’s Arjun Sablok in September 2006, and narrated a story about three friends, two Muslim boys and a girl, and how, post-9/11, one of them is captured and tortured.
When he is freed for lack of evidence, he becomes a terrorist. New York sees an innocent Samir Shaikh (John Abraham) arrested on suspicion and tortured for nine months before being released.
“When I saw the film, I was shocked to see it was basically my story. It hurts when a reputed banner like YRF does this to newcomers like us,” Bhatia said, adding that she had registered her script with the Film Writers’ Association before narrating it to Sablok.
On Tuesday, she lodged a complaint against YRF for breach of intellectual property rights. Rafique Gangjee, vice-president, marketing and communications, YRF, called Bhatia’s allegations baseless.
“It is unfortunate that this issue has come up after the film has released, when its promos have been on air since December 12, 2008, with its plot clearly outlined. She could have raised the issue over the past several months – doing it now can only be termed opportunistic,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}“It is unfortunate that this issue has come up after the film has released, when its promos have been on air since December 12, 2008, with its plot clearly outlined. She could have raised the issue over the past several months – doing it now can only be termed opportunistic,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}He added, “YRF has been known to give breaks to lots of budding writers and directors, so there’s absolutely no reason for us to resort to what she’s suggesting.”