It all started when the first poster of Simran was
released this week and credited the film’s leading lady Kangana Ranaut as the
additional story and dialogue writer. Now the simmering feud between the star
and the film’s writer Apurva Asrani is out in the open, thanks to his Facebook
post where he hit out at Kangana and the film's director Hansal Mehta.
Image Source: twitter/SimranMovie
Apurva wrote: “Ms Ranaut has been claiming in several
interviews that Hansal Mehta, the director of Simran, approached her with just
a one line screenplay of the film. She says that the story was dark &
gritty thriller at that stage and that she herself developed it into a light,
fun film. This completely discredits me and my efforts, and I have to call out
this lie at the cost of so many of her fans turning against me.”
Earlier, Kangana's friends had told SpotboyE.com that she dictated the script to Apurva
Writers often get sidelined in Bollywood but will this
headline grabbing feud between a star and a writer, affect the way the industry
looks at writers and the value of their work? We spoke to wordsmiths in the
business, including the legendary Salim Khan. Here is what they had to say:
Image Source: Manav Manglani
Salim Khan: Gone are the days when writers were educated
and well read. Film making is not an easy job and we would give complete
scripts to the producers and the director. Now, films are made on a
trial-and-error basis. How many from the present generation of writers submit
their work with ‘The End’ on paper? If you do not give a full script to the
producer or your director, how can you expect to get full credits for your
work? I do not know much Kangana or Apurva have contributed to the
script/ screenplay. But I still feel that if you have done your 100% , you will
be given credits.
Image Source: cloudpix
Mukesh Bhatt: Credits to the writers depend on person to person or company to company. Now, we in our company give full credits to the writers as we know how important they are to the process of film making. Back then in the 1970s, you had people like Salim-Javed who delivered blockbusters. If the writers want to have a say in the crucial decisions of film making, then you got to become like them. Ultimately everything depends on the box-office collections.
Image Source: cloudpix
Nikhil Mehrotra: I do agree that there was a time where writers were as important as the stars of the film. But I personally have never experienced something like this. I was given credit for every project I was a part of. Particularly after writing Dangal, I have never come across an incident where I have been sidelined.
Image Source: 123images
Robin Bhatt: I feel everyone who gives his 100% to a project, will be given full credits. Always deserve before you desire. If a writer, despite giving 100%, does not get what he deserves then the producer and the director should stand up and sort this out. I know many directors who do that. Directors like Abbas Mastan and Rajesh Roshan make sure that they call up the writers before changing even one line. This faith in the writer comes in only after you deliver blockbusters. In case of Simran, I feel that not just the writer but also the producer needs to stand up for the writer. Making a few alterations in the script does not make you a writer. A writer is someone who writes the film from scratch and not someone who just makes a few changes. Ask Kangana to write a few lines on a blank piece of paper, will she be able to do it?
Image Source: imgrum
Saiwyn Quadras: I feel it is unjust on the part of Hansal
to do such a thing. Maybe Kangana did contribute to the film and made a few
changes, but the movie was written by Apurva. In this industry, we all work for
credit so why should Apurva, who wrote the entire project, sacrifice his
credits for Kangana? I have been fortunate enough that the team of Neerja
had given me my due credit. It was very sweet of Shabanaji to even mention our
names at the award ceremonies. I feel that Kangana who has always stood up for
the right and been an inspiration to many of us, should ask the producer to
clear this up.
Thumbnail Image Source: lavishtrend & vitanq