Journalist and author Puja Changoiwala has initiated legal action against Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions, and Netflix for allegedly plagiarising her 2021 novel Homebound. She will shortly file a suit in the Bombay high court over their film of the same name, directed by Neeraj Ghaywan and starring Ishaan Khatter, Vishal Jethwa and Janhvi Kapoor.
Homebound was released in September, after its May premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. It was later entered as India’s official entry to the Oscars and is now shortlisted for the prestigious award.
The film’s team has claimed that it is based on a 2020 New York Times article by journalist Basharat Peer, titled A Friendship, A Pandemic And A Death Beside The Highway. The film tells the story of two friends who attempt to pass the national examinations for joining the police force, but are caught in the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Puja, the producers have not only misappropriated the title of her book but have also “blatantly reproduced” substantial portions of the book in the second half of the film — including scenes, dialogues, narrative structure, sequence of events, and other creative expressions.
After Puja Changoiwala watched the film, her lawyer on October 15 issued Dharma Productions a legal notice, providing a detailed scene-by-scene account of their infringement of her rights. The producers, however, refused to acknowledge the violation. According to Puja, Dharma committed a flagrant act of passing off by naming the film after her book. She also alleged that the film was scripted in 2022, well after her 2021 novel had been published.
Puja will seek permanent injunction against the distribution and exhibition of Homebound, removal of all allegedly infringing material from the film, a change in the film’s title, and damages for alleged copyright infringement.