Bollywood, for years, has been hailed for bringing thought-provoking stories and performances to our screens. One aspect which the industry also gets dashed for is the lack of originality. When it comes to respecting copyright and giving credit where it is due, Bollywood has always lagged. Many Hindi movies have been copied from Hollywood and other languages. While some makers prefer to call it inspiration, not giving due credit to the original film translates it as outright plagiarism that persists in Bollywood
Was lapataa ladies copied?
Not many know, but India’s Oscar entry ‘Laapataa Ladies’ was copied from a Middle-Eastern film ‘Burqa City’. Directed by Kiran Rao, the film was accused of having the same plot and scenes with burqa and ghunghat being the only difference, according to netizens.
Taking to Instagram, The Tatva India wrote, “Kiran Rao’s ‘Laapataa Ladies’, selected as India’s official entry for the 2025 Oscars, has sparked a major controversy among netizens. Critics have accused the film of borrowing heavily from the 2019 short film ‘Burqa City’ and Ananth Mahadevan’s ‘Ghoonghat ke Pat Khol’.
The caption on the post further elaborated on the key differences between the movies: “Both older works centre around the comedic mix-ups of wives due to identical burqas and ghoonghats, respectively, which parallel the plot and themes of Rao’s film. The similarities have led to allegations of uncredited inspiration, overshadowing the film’s reception despite its feminist narrative,” it read.
4 Times Bollywood Got ‘Inspired’ But Didn’t Give Due Credit
Here are the Bollywood films that took inspiration from other movies but didn’t give due credits:
Bajrangi bhaijaan
According to Yahoo! Life, he makers of Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015) faced a Rs 50 crore copyright infringement case. Director Mahim Joshi claimed the film’s plot and locations were lifted from his script, registered in 2007. Joshi alleged he had pitched his story to production houses, and the copyright infringement was ‘career damaging’.
Munna Bhai M.B.B.S
Munna bhai isone of the most beloved film franchises in Bollywood, but few know that the original film was inspired by Robin Williams’ iconic movie, ‘Patch Adams’.
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Taxi No. 9211
Two movies, one Bollywood and one Hollywood, share a similar storyline. Both films follow the story of a rich young guy who’s at the mercy of a quirky taxi driver. But here’s the thing—the Hollywood version‘Changing Lanes’,starring Ben Affleck and Samuel L Jackson, was released before its Indian counterpart.
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Partner
Partner and Hitch, both movies are over-the-top comedies that work in their ways, with some different subplots. But despite their differences, they stick to the same basic idea from beginning to end, making them feel more similar than they should.
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Credits: IMDb