Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies Accused of Plagiarism, Sparks Debate on Originality in Bollywood

Kiran Rao’s directorial venture Laapataa Ladies garnered widespread acclaim from both critics and audiences, emerging as a major success and even securing the honor of being India’s official entry to the 2025 Oscars. However, the film has recently come under scrutiny following accusations of plagiarism.The controversy arose after a clip from the 2019 Arabic film Burqa City began circulating online, prompting social media users to highlight striking resemblances between the two films. The similarities have sparked a heated debate, with many questioning the originality of Laapataa Ladies.

In 2019, filmmaker Fabrice Bracq released the satirical short film Burqa City, a 19-minute narrative set in the Middle East. The plot follows a newlywed man’s frantic search for his wife after she is mistakenly swapped with another woman wearing an identical burqa.

The film delivers a powerful critique of patriarchal societies, highlighting the oppressive norms imposed on women and how their identities are often rendered invisible. However, Burqa City has recently become the center of a controversy involving Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies. Fans have accused Rao of replicating the film’s central theme, merely replacing the burqa with a ghunghat, sparking debates over originality and creative integrity.

Kiran Rao's Lapata Ladies, India's official entry to the Oscars and projected as an original work, actually seems heavily inspired by a 2019 short film titled Burqa City.

Set in Middle East, the 19 min film follows a newlywed man whose wife gets exchanged due to identical… pic.twitter.com/b7GcHN2MmI

— THE SKIN DOCTOR (@theskindoctor13) March 31, 2025

Several social media users criticized Kiran Rao for her work, with one remarking, “Nothing that Bollywood produces seems to be an original work of art. They are all brazenly copy pasted from somewhere else, shamelessly billed as original work.”

Another internet user commented, “Plagiarism in India. Not a new concept.” Meanwhile, a third person tweeted, “Abhi kuch nahi ho sakta..I was under the impression that it was original..good that this movie gave one beautiful song Sajni re by Arijit.” For those unaware, Laapataa Ladies was produced by Aamir Khan, Kiran Rao, and Jyoti Deshpande under the banners of Aamir Khan Productions, Kindling Pictures, and Jio Studios.