Is India’s 2025 Oscar entry “Laapataa Ladies” copy of this film?

These similarities have led to claims that the film copied ideas without giving credit. Even though the film promotes a feminist message, this issue has affected its reputation.

Hyderabad: India’s official entry for the 2025 Oscars, Laapataa Ladies, is facing controversy. Many believe the film is too similar to the 2019 short film Burqa City and Ananth Mahadevan’s Ghoonghat Ke Pat Khol. Both older films also show women getting mixed up because they wear similar burqas or ghoonghats, just like in Laapataa Ladies.

These similarities have led to claims that the film copied ideas without giving credit. Even though the film promotes a feminist message, this issue has affected its reputation.

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The problem grew when the Film Federation of India (FFI) announced the Oscar selection using words that many people found insulting to Indian women. This caused even more anger on social media.

However, some say the copying claims may not be true. GrokAl, an AI platform, explained that Laapataa Ladies is based on a story by Biplab Goswami and is not the same as Burqa City. While both films have mistaken identity themes, Laapataa Ladies is set in rural India with wedding veils, while Burqa City takes place in the Middle East with burqas. But GrokAl did say that the film might be more similar to Ghoonghat Ke Pat Khol.