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Burqa City vs Laapataa Ladies: French filmmaker Fabrice Bracq, who directed the Arabic short Burqa City in 2019, criticised Laapataa Ladies for appearing a bit too similar. He claimed that his short and Kiran Rao's highly acclaimed movie have more in common than merely a style.

Burqa City vs Laapataa Ladies controversy first rose when a viral video featuring scenes from the film and Kiran Rao's directorial began to circulate side by side on social media. Many began to wonder if the Laapataa Ladies had gone too far in the direction of copying.

Burqa City's director talked about how precisely the pitch mirrored his short film, expressing both astonishment and amazement. "First of all, even before watching the film, I was surprised by how closely the pitch matched that of my short film. Then I watched the film, and I was both surprised and shocked to see that, although the story had been adapted to Indian culture, many aspects of my short were clearly present, " he said, speaking to IFP in an exclusive conversation. 

"Notably – and this is by no means an exhaustive list – the kind, loving, naive husband who loses his wife, contrasted with the other husband who is violent and despicable. The scene with the police officer is also striking: a corrupt, violent, and intimidating policeman surrounded by two sidekicks. Of course, there’s the moment with the photo of the veiled woman, " the filmmaker added. 

Fabrice Bracq discussed the scene in which the husband looks for his wife in a number of stores. It is especially telling since, like in the short film, he shows the store owners a picture of his veiled wife. "The scene where the kind husband searches for his wife in various shops is particularly revealing – he shows the shopkeepers a photo of his veiled wife, just like in the short film, and then the shopkeeper’s wife comes out wearing a burqa, almost like a nod to Burqa City. There’s also the similarity in the plot twist at the end, where we learn that the woman deliberately chose to run away from her abusive husband – a key narrative element in Burqa City," he continued.

"And more broadly, the film carries a similar message about women’s emancipation and feminism," he stated in his concluding statement.

Also Read - Laapataa Ladies Writer Breaks Silence On Plagiarism Allegations Against The Movie, Calls Them ‘Completely Untrue’

On Saturday, Biplab Goswami, the writer of Laapataa Ladies, denied accusations that the plot of the film was plagiarised. He stated the accusations are 'completely untrue' in a statement on his Instagram page."Our story, characters, and dialogues are 100% original. Any allegations of plagiarism are completely untrue. These allegations not just undermine my efforts as a writer, but also the tireless efforts of the entire filmmaking team," read his statement. 

About Burqa City

Burqa City is a 19-minute satirical short movie directed by Fabrice Bracq in 2019 that is set in the Middle East. The movie is about a newlywed man who gets lost trying to find his bride after she is erroneously switched with another woman who is wearing the same burqa. Burqa City criticises gender-based limitations, patriarchal societies, and the suppression of women's identities through this story.

About Laapataa Ladies

Two brides are switched in a train in the 2001 fictional state of Nirmal Pradesh, the setting for Laapataa Ladies. The groom of one of them takes the other home, leaving the other stranded at a train station. A policeman named Kishan (Ravi Kishan) decides to look into the matter on his own. It is based on a Biplab Goswami narrative that won an award. Under the auspices of Aamir Khan Productions, Kindling Pictures, and Jio Studios, Aamir Khan, Kiran Rao, and Jyoti Deshpande produced the movie.

Also Read - Laapataa Ladies Accused of Plagiarism? Viral Clips From Arabic Film Burqa City Spark Controversy

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