Mumbai: Following the teaser release of ‘O Romeo’, gangster Hussain Ustara’s daughter, Sanober Sheikh alleged that the filmmakers misrepresented her father’s life story in the film and threatened legal action against them.
Reacting to Sanober’s allegations, director Vishal Bhardwaj stated that he didn’t think of taking permission from anyone as his film is based on a book ‘Mafia Queens of Mumbai’.
Speaking at the trailer launch of the film on Wednesday, Vishal said, “There is a book named Mafia Queens of Mumbai, which is written by Hussain Zaidi. I took the rights of that story and made a film. Of course, characters are from the book but there are certain fictional aspects as well. I am sure Hussain sahab must have taken all permissions. Therefore, I do not think I also needed to take permissions. My film is based on a story which is a part of a book.”
Earlier this month, a Bollywood Hungama report claimed that Sanober has sent a legal notice to the makers of ‘O Romeo’, demanding a compensation of Rs 2 Crore for wrong portrayal of her father.
While speaking to CNN-News18, Sanober said, “O Romeo is based on baba. The teaser states that the film is based on a true story. I want to ask them, who’s the person the film is based on. My father wasn’t a gangster. Hussain Ustara helped a lot of people. He wanted to cleanse the city and remove gangsters. He wasn’t a criminal. You won’t find any criminal record. The problem is how is image is portrayed in the film.”
Produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, ‘O Romeo’ marks Vishal’s reunion with Shahid Kapoor after over eight years.
The actor-director duo has previously worked together on films like ‘Kaminey’ (2009), ‘Haider’ (2014), and ‘Rangoon’ (2017).
The film also features Triptii Dimri and is slated to release in theatres on February 13.
