Here's why 'Laapataa Ladies' seems to have been taken from 'Burqa City'
A 20-minute short on YouTube by Fabrice Bracq, Burqa City, feels like a Hindi film we've watched — Kiran Rao's critically acclaimed Laapataa Ladies. The latter has been embroiled in plagiarism controversy for the past few days after netizens noticed the film's stark similarities with the 2019 Arabic film Burqa City.
Recently, Biplab Goswami, the writer of Laapataa Ladies, responded to the allegations, asserting that his story is 100 per cent original and that he had registered the film's synopsis with the Screenwriters Association before Burqa City was made, in 2014. He also claimed that the story, dialogues, characters and scenes in his film stem from years of research and 'honest reflection.' However, the director of Burqa City addressed the controversy recently saying that he is shocked to know about the similarities in Laapataa Ladies with his film and would like to discuss it with Rao.
Having watched both films, Laapataa Ladies and Burqa City, we can say that the central plot is quite similar. However, while the latter is far more nuanced and direct, with loads of sarcasm and humour fitted into a 20-minute short, the Hindi film by Rao is a more masala-heavy, stretched-out version. Both are based in different contexts, yet, are heartwarming and fiercely feminist in their outlook. Both sustain a critique of the veil — the burqa in Bracq's Burqa City and the ghoonghat in Rao's Hindi feature — as a representation of oppression. The films share a common plot thread in which a woman is mistakenly swapped with another, leading to a series of dramatic events.
Here are some similarities between the two that are too striking to ignore:
Similar character archetypes: Both films feature a "kind, loving, naive husband" and a "violent and despicable" husband, highlighting the contrast between good and evil.
Plot twist: The plot twist at the end of both films is also similar, revealing that the woman deliberately chose to run away from her abusive husband.
Corrupt authority figures: Both films feature a "corrupt, violent" police officer, adding to the sense of tension and injustice.
Visual motifs: The photo of a veiled woman is a prominent visual motif in both films, symbolizing themes of identity and oppression.
Sadly, this is not the first time a Hindi film has met a plagiarism accusation. There have been many such past instances, with filmmakers resorting to the age-old excuse of "getting inspired" from earlier films. Some examples: Raabta (2017), accused of lifting the plot from the 2009 Telugu Blockbuster Magadheera; Hindi Medium (2017), alleged to be a copy of the 2014 Bengali film Ramdhanu; Dear Zindagi (2016), found to be similar in plot to the Canadian comedy-drama TV series Being Erica.
In the past few years, with Bollywood unable to churn out "good films," audiences and film experts have been questioning the dearth of original story ideas in what is said to be among Asia's most lucrative film industries.
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