Mumbai: Journalist and author Puja Changoiwala has initiated legal action against Dharma Productions Private Limited and Netflix India for allegedly plagiarising her 2021 novel ‘Homebound’.
Puja will file a suit in Bombay High Court over the recently-released film of the same name, directed by Neeraj Ghaywan, reported Hindustan Times.
The film, starring Ishaan Khatter, Vishal Jethwa and Janhvi Kapoor, was chosen as India’s Oscar 2026 entry. ‘Homebound’ has thereafter been shortlisted for the 98th Academy Awards in the Best International Feature Film category.
The makers of ‘Homebound’, which was released in theatres on September 26 following its premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, claimed that the story is based on a 2020 New York Times article by journalist Basharat Peer titled ‘A Friendship, a Pandemic and a Death Beside the Highway’.
However, Puja has made allegations of copyright infringement against ‘Homebound’.
In an email to HT, Puja said that the subject of her novel and the film is the COVID-19 migrant exodus of 2020. “Upon watching the film, I discovered that the producers have not only misappropriated the title of my book, but have also blatantly reproduced substantial portions of my novel in the second half of the film — including its scenes, dialogue, narrative structure, sequence of events, and other creative expressions.”
After watching the film, Puja issued a legal notice to Karan Johar and Adar Poonawalla’s Dharma Productions on October 15 through her lawyer, “providing a detailed, scene-by-scene account of their infringement of (her) rights.”
However, the producers “refused to acknowledge the violation” in their replies, claimed Puja.
The author has now started legal proceedings against Dharma Productions and Netflix India by filing an application before the Maharashtra State Legal Services Authority under Section 12A of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 — the pre-institution mediation process, which is mandatory before a suit is filed in the Bombay High Court, HT reported.
In her lawsuit, Puja will seek permanent injunction against the distribution of ‘Homebound’, removal of allegedly infringing material, change in the film’s title and damages for alleged infringement of her copyright.
“I know I’m challenging powerful entities by taking this step, but I believe it’s important for writers to defend their work when it’s misappropriated and exploited without their consent,” the author stated.
Dharma Productions has not yet commented on Puja’s allegations.
