Sj Desk
The ongoing tussle over the Mr India trilogy just got more heated! On Friday, veteran lyricist-writer Javed Akhtar called out director Shekhar Kapur for hogging credit for the 1987 release. Akhtar said that Kapur cannot ignore his work as the writer by solely taking the credit for the film.
The announcement of a new trilogy, to be directed by Ali Abbas Zafar, based on the hit movie Mr India did not sit well with the makers of the original. Shekhar Kapur, who directed the movie starring Anil Kapoor and Sridevi was particularly irked as he was not consulted about the project. He tweeted:
No one has even asked me or mentioned to me about this film called Mr India 2. I can only guess that they using the title to get a big weekend. For they cannot use the characters/story without permission from the original creators of the film. https://t.co/Set5eDH63j
— Shekhar Kapur (@shekharkapur) February 18, 2020
Actor Sonam Kapoor also took to social media to express her displeasure. She said it was “disrespectful” how her father and director were not consulted before the announcement.
Also Read: Sridevi Did Not Want Mr India Sequel Or Remake; Anil, Shekhar Also Miffed
The blockbuster movie featured Anil Kapoor as Mr India, the late Sridevi as a bubbly journalist, and late veteran actor Amrish Puri as the iconic villain Mogambo. The film was written by Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar.
On Thursday, Shekhar questioned how his-- the director's creative rights over the film be overlooked? “The argument on a remake of #MrIndia is not that no one took permission from me or even bothered to tell me. The question is. If you are remaking a feature film, based on a director’s very successful work, does the director have no creative rights over what he/she created?”
To this, Akhtar said that the credit doesn't entirely belong to him. He replied to his tweet and said:
Shekhar saheb the story the situations the scenes the characters the dialogue the lyrics even the title none of these were yours .I gave it all to you . Yes you execute it very well but how can your claim on the film be more than mine . It wasn’t you idea . It wasn’t your dream
— Javed Akhtar (@Javedakhtarjadu) February 28, 2020
