After an exhausting back and forth on social media between Hadiqa Kiani and people clarifying whether or not she had sold rights to her song, Boohay Barian, another song seems to have been featured without consent, and it’s a Pakistani classic that belongs to singer and politician, Abrar Ul Haq.
What Happened
Entertainment journalist Sadiq Saleem took to Twitter to highlight how a trailer for Karan Johar’s Jug Jug Jeeyo featured a Pakistani hit, Nach Punjaban.
For those who have not heard the song (can’t be too many people, the song is basically a rite of passage at this point), Nach Punjaban is a mega hit wedding classic that has been blasting through ceremonies and streets alike for the longest time. The journalist likened the case to Hadiqa Kiani’s song being…uh, “borrowed” without credits and royalties by Kanika Kapoor.
Abrar Ul Haq Responds
The singer himself took to social media to clarify that he has not sold his song to any Indian movie, and further stated that he reserves the rights to “go to court and claim damages.”
Abrar ul Haq chided Karan Johar as well, advising him to do better than to use copied songs for his movies. Furthermore, he mentioned that this is the sixth instance of the same kind, and he cannot allow this to go on any longer.
Previous Case
April of this year witnessed the alleged theft on Boohey Barian, where Hadiqa Kiani took to her stories to address Kanika Kapoor’s rendition that was posted on Saregama Music’s YouTube channel, crediting Gourov Dasgupta and Shruti Rane as composers, with lyrics being credited to Kunwar Juneja. Hadiqa Kiani had not been mentioned anywhere.
Responses Issued
A statement on Twitter by MOVIEBOX, which controls multiple labels, reveals that the accusations may not be true, leaving people thoroughly confused as to why Abrar Ul Haq was kept in the dark regarding the same. The post reads:
“Nach Panjaban has been officially licensed for it to be included in the Film “Jug Jugg Jeeyo” by @TSeries. @karanjohar & @DharmaMovies have the legal rights to use this song in their film and the tweet by @AbrarUlHaqPK earlier today is defamatory and completely unacceptable.”
Moreover, Somen Mishra, a Dharma employee, tweeted the following:
“I have no idea how people do film journalism without having basics in place, these are like basics of business, thoda padh likh lo, check karo, how these things work, see the music label. Ata na pata, daag do tweet, script ho ya music. Problem is every moron got a twitter account.”
Abrar Ul Haq Fights Back
Just a while ago, the singer took to social media to state that the song “has not been licensed to [anyone]. If someone is claiming it, then produce the agreement. I will be taking legal action.”
It’s interesting to note how this bizarre back and forth is taking place now, with most of us in the dark about what’s really going on. Recent examples of Pakistani music being featured in Indian productions also include Ali Sethi’s music in Modern Love. Was due action is taken in terms of legality? We will have to wait and find out.
T-Series Responds
In another absurd twist, T-Series has responded with the following post
“We have legally acquired the rights to adapt the song #NachPunjaban released on iTunes on 1st January, 2002 & available on Lollywood Classics’ YouTube channel, owned by @1Moviebox, for #JugJuggJeeyo produced by @DharmaMovies.”
The plot thickens, yet again.
This is a developing story.
