Is ‘Jhootha Hi Sahi’ a rip-off of ‘Friends’?

Spicezee Bureau

Mumbai: The trend of plagiarism is not new in Bollywood. When it comes to inspiration, Bollywood has no qualms in copying from Hollywood projects. The latest news doing rounds is that John Abraham’s upcoming movie ‘Jhootha Hi Sahi’ is rip-off of super hit television series ‘Friends’. Apparently, Warner Bros has demanded a special screening of ‘Jhootha Hi Sahi’ from the producers of the film prior to its release, suspecting that the movie is a copy of ‘Friends’. However, the producers of ‘Jhootha Hi Sahi’ debunk the claim stating that the movie is not at all a remake of ‘Friends’. Talking to a news daily about this allegation, a source said, “Producer Madhu Varma got a call from the company’s officials saying that the film is similar to ‘Friends’. Varma explained that it was not true and the film had nothing to do with ‘Friends’. However the company insisted and has now asked for a trial, failing which it would sue them.” “Varma has no option but to clear the misunderstanding. ‘Jhootha Hi Sahi’ is a story about friends and love, just like Abbas Tyrewala’s maiden directorial venture, ‘Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na’. The theme of a set of friends is universal and one wonders how there would be any similarity to ‘Friends’,” said the source. When contacted, Madhu Varma, the producer of the film confirmed the news and said, “Yes, they called me a week back but it’s a misunderstanding and I explained it to them. Then someone else from Warner also called my partner. I just fail to understand how it can be a remake. The fact and the matter is that ‘Jhootha Hi Sahi’ is the second part of a trilogy that Abbas is making. The first part, ‘Jaane Tu…’, also had a set of friends and a love story. So is the theme of ‘Jhootha Hi Sahi’.” When contacted, officials at Warner Brothers remained unavailable for comments. ‘Jhootha Hi Sahi’ is directed by Abbas Tyrewala and it stars Bollywood hunk John Abraham and newbie Pakhi Tyrewala, Abbas Tyewala’s wife.