By Murtuza Iqbal
Yesterday, Kangana Ranaut had announced that she is coming up with the second installment of the Manikarnika franchise titled Manikarnika Returns: The Legend Of Didda. And now, the film has landed up into a controversy.
An author named Ashish Kaul has claimed that the actress has stolen his story.
While talking to Times of India, Kaul stated, “I have the exclusive copyrights to the life story of Didda who was the Princess of Lohar (Poonch), now in Jammu & Kashmir, and the Queen of Kashmir. On September 11, 2020, I had written to her (Kangana) on her official email ID, which belongs to her sister Rangoli, requesting her to pen a foreword for my book ‘Didda - Kashmir Ki Yodha Rani’, which is yet to release in 2019. Appended in the same email was the entire life story of the warrior queen.”
“Is it believable by any stretch of the imagination that a story and a book is being usurped by a renowned actor-turned-social activist? She may even turn around and claim that Didda is a historical figure, which is true except the fact that no historian in the world, apart from Kalhan who wrote just two pages on her, and me, who has spent six years on research and documentation, who have information on her. I am deeply aghast that a person as aware, knowledgeable, and apparently a nationalist and a voice for causes, has chosen to belittle her image so. She has blatantly violated my sole rights; it is illegal and an absolute violation of the IPR and copyright laws of the same country that she swears by. I find it so brazen and hideous and I am still inclined to believe that Kangana has been misguided,” he added.
We wonder what Kangana has to say about this claim. Even Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi was embroiled in controversies during its release, and now, Manikarnika Returns: The Legend Of Didda in the news for the wrong reason even before it goes on the floors.
While announcing the film, Kangana had tweeted, “हमारा भारतवर्ष साक्षी रहा है झाँसी की रानी जैसे कई वीरांगनाओं की कहानी का. ऐसी ही एक और अनकही वीरगाथा है कश्मीर की एक रानी की, जिसने महमूद गजनवी को एक नहीं, दो बार हराया. ले कर आ रहे हैं @KamalJain_TheKJ और मैं, #ManikarnikaReturns: The Legend of Didda.”
