Nishant Kaushik, an Indian author based in Australia, has, in a series of tweets, narrated his ordeal of having submitted a story to filmmaker Siddharth P Malhotra but not getting any feedback from him.
The author, who has written books like A Romance With Chaos and My Father Is A Hero, claimed that the trailer of Hichki, starring Rani Mukerji and directed by Malhotra, is very similar to his own story that he had submitted in 2015.
In his tweets, he narrated with screenshots how he first corresponded with Malhotra. Kaushik started sketching out the characters and the storyline after Malhotra gave him a one-line brief. He claimed that after submitting the material, he got no response from Malhotra.
In March 2015, director Siddharth Malhotra spoke to me about a story that needs to be written. I was excited, and thankful for being considered to take a stab at the opportunity. I mentioned I had a day job. I was told time is not a constraint.
— Nishant Kaushik (@nofreecopies) December 20, 2017
Siddharth gave me a one-liner brief. I began working. Over a month, I developed characters, motives, plotlines, and a story synopsis. Despite being in Australia, opened all channels of comms to keep him abreast with updates. pic.twitter.com/sTNfHryRqq
— Nishant Kaushik (@nofreecopies) December 20, 2017
After submitting the material over email, I waited. Dropped emails and texts. No response. This could have meant 2 things: 1) The project was not taking off. Or, 2) My work was not fit for purpose. I conceded with whichever of the two was true.
— Nishant Kaushik (@nofreecopies) December 20, 2017
More than 2.5 years later, I watch the #Hichki trailer and notice a rather similar storyline, a protagonist with the same speech disorder I had described, and other nuances that I MAY NOT own all by myself, but are undoubtedly similar to the ones I portrayed.
— Nishant Kaushik (@nofreecopies) December 20, 2017
Does this mean Hichki is my story? NO.
Does it mean I worked on it and was owed the courtesy of a response or acknowledgement of the effort I invested? HELL YES.— Nishant Kaushik (@nofreecopies) December 20, 2017
The author further states that it’s the whole situation of being cut off after putting in months of hard work that rankles him so much, prompting him to share it on social media. The team of Hichki is yet to respond to the allegations.
My written material, which has been nonchalantly consumed (and possibly forgotten), and all my communication with Siddharth Malhotra is saved on record. Happy to present evidence. But the question is what am I to expect of it?
— Nishant Kaushik (@nofreecopies) December 20, 2017
For what should I expect of the person/s who did not so much as show courtesy to provide a line of correspondence to indicate what course my months of effort was going to take thereon?
— Nishant Kaushik (@nofreecopies) December 20, 2017
In my mind, this episode just validates all the stories I have read of anon/little known writers making claims in media reports that their stories were shamelessly flicked into major motion pictures without giving them due credit.
— Nishant Kaushik (@nofreecopies) December 20, 2017
#Hichki team, good luck to you. I am sure you will earn millions. I hope all the money you make is good enough to numb you, because if I were you, my conscience would be pricking me sharp. RANT ENDS.
— Nishant Kaushik (@nofreecopies) December 20, 2017
Several social media users, including screenwriter Apurva Asrani who had faced a similar situation not-so long ago, have offered support to Kaushik, stating that this kind of behaviour is typical of Bollywood.
Plagiarism or not, the way our industry treats writers is appalling. https://t.co/kZUTfsQk8u
— Apurva Asrani (@Apurvasrani) December 20, 2017
Oh man @nofreecopies I feel you. Such has become rampant in the industry. I’ll ensure I don’t watch the flick. You’ve my support! It’s high time people stood up & sent a message. https://t.co/JgY8vkD7yh
— The names Gohil, Mehul Gohil. ? (@mehulgohil) December 20, 2017
Just now only watched @FilmCompanion FC adda, where producers were saying that there is shortage of writers. And then these things happen, that too by a big production house. https://t.co/Ol5dpgBl8e
— Pankaj Parashar (@pankajtalkies) December 20, 2017
Hichki‘s trailer was out on December 19. Rani plays the character of Naina Mathur – a teacher with Tourette’s Syndrome, who is tasked to teach 14 children who hail from the slums studying in an elite school under the Right to Education Act. Directed by Siddharth P Malhotra and produced by Maneesh Sharma, Hichki is set to release on February 23, 2018.
