Bollywood / Writer moves HC against Deepika's Chhapaak, seeks credit for story

A writer has approached the Bombay High Court against Deepika Padukone-starrer Chhapaak, claiming he originally penned an acid attack survivor’s story on which the film is based. The petitioner, Rakesh Bharti, has sought that he should be given credit as one of the writers of the film.

The suit filed by Bharti claimed that he had conceived an idea/script for a movie, tentatively titled Black Day, and got it registered with the Indian Motion Pictures Producers’ Association (IMPPA) in February 2015. Bharti said since then he has been working on the script and approaching several artists and producers, including Fox Star Studios, for a narration.

“However, the project could not commence due to unavoidable circumstances. The plaintiff had narrated the idea to Fox Star Studios, which is the production house for Chhapaak,” the plea said.

Bharti’s advocate Ashok Sarogi said the plaintiff later came to know that an identical film is being produced by the defendants (Fox Star Studios and others) and directed by Meghna Gulzar. Bharti submitted complaints to the producers but did not get any reply following which he approached the Bombay High Court.

In his plea, Bharti has sought that he be given credit as one of the writers of the movie Chhapaak and the film’s release be stayed until due credit is given to him. He has also sought for an expert to be appointed to compare his script and that of Chhapaak.

Sarogi said the plea will be heard by a vacation bench of the high court on December 27.

Chhapaak, based on the life of acid atack survivor Laxmi Agarwal, stars Deepika Padukone and Vikrant Massey in the lead roles. The film, which also marks Deepika’s debut as a producer, is slated for release on January 10, 2020. It will clash with Ajay Devgn and Kajol-starrer Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior at the box office.