Kajol's Short Film "Devi" Lands Into Legal Trouble, Filmmaker Alleges Plagiarism

Kajol's digital debut has landed into a controversy after a freelance filmmaker alleged that the short film Devi has been plagiarized. Directed by Priyanka Banerjee, Devi features Shruti Haasan, Neha Dhupia, Neena Kulkarni, Mukta Barve, Sandhya Mhatre, Rama Joshi, Shivani Raghuvanshi and Yashaswini Dayama. Abhishek Rai, the filmmaker has alleged that his short film Four made during his college assignment in 2018 has striking resemblance.  Devi is produced by Niranjan Iyengar and Ryan Stephen's Electric Apples Entertainment. The short film released on March 2, 2020.

Rai has alleged that he got in touch with the filmmakers but did not receive any response from their side. He now plans to file a legal suit against the filmmakers. Devi revolves around the issue of sexual harassment faced by women in the society. The 13 minute short film received a huge response from the audience and film critics. Kajol plays a pivotal role in her first digital project.

During an interview with a leading daily, Abhishek Rai said that he had made Four to compel people to make them think hard about the issue of rape. He never had any intention to make a commercial film. But when he saw Devi, he liked it and was happy that his idea was reaching out to a large audience. But he felt disappointed that the team of Devi did not respond to his queries seeking explanation. He reached out to Priyanka but did not receive any response.

Rai also shared the link of the short film and is project to which people found it hard to ignore the similarities between the two films. However, he now demands that filmmakers release a public apology as he deserves a credit or an acknowledgement for Devi. He plans to take it legally through his college's help. The freelance filmmaker is waiting for a response from the team.