Mumbai: Days after filing a lawsuit against the makers of ‘Dhurandhar’ over the alleged unauthorised use of the ‘Tridev’ song ‘Tirchi Topiwale’, filmmaker Rajiv Rai has accused the filmmakers of wrongdoing and even referring to them as “thieves.”
In an interview with DNA, Rajiv said, “This is a theft. Yeh poori chori ban jaati hai. Aur aap isko dusri picture mein dalte hai alter kar ke, toh woh double chori hai (This becomes a case of theft). When you use the song in another film after altering it, it is double theft). This is a theft in my eyes. When these people go to court, they will say that we did not steal. You go to court because there is a crime. I have to prove that this is a theft and this is a crime. The court has to give a verdict on whether I am right or wrong.”
The popular track, originally filmed on Madhuri Dixit, Sonam Khan and Sangeeta Bijlani, went on to become a major chartbuster.
In ‘Dhurandhar 2’, the song features in the climax, with a remixed version also included in the film’s soundtrack.
Rai’s production banner, Trimurti Films, filed a lawsuit against Jio Studios and B62 Studios, along with T-Series, which holds the music rights to the film.
While T-Series maintains that owning the music rights allows them to use the track in ‘Dhurandhar 2’, Rai has disputed this claim.
He contended that these rights are limited to the soundtrack and album, and do not authorise the use of the song within the film’s visual narrative or picture track.
Slamming the makers of ‘Dhurandhar’, Rai said, “It’s my creation that has gone into Dhurandhar. Have I earned anything out of it? No. Have they thanked me? No. Have they taken permission? No. In my opinion, it’s a theft, and these people are thieves. Na apne gaana create kiya, record kiya, then kis hadh tak leke ja rahe hain (You didn’t create or record the song, then how are you using it). I’ve created, produced, and recorded the song. I have paid lyricist Anand Bakshi and Viju Shah for the music. I own the song.”
