Rajiv Rai recently broke silence on the ongoing song controversy, accusing filmmaker Aditya Dhar for stealing the Tirchi Topiwale in his newly released film Dhurandhar: The Revenge.
The 70-year-old filmmaker, who directed action-paced film Tridev, slammed the Dhurandhar team for using the famous track of his film without permission.
Rajiv Rai accuses Aditya Dhar's Dhurandhar 2 for stealing his song
While speaking exclusively to DNA, Rai addressed, "This is a theft. This becomes a case of theft. When you use the song in another film after altering it, it is double theft. This is a theft in my eyes. When these people go to court, they will say that we did not steal. You go to court because there is a crime. I have to prove that this is a theft and this is a crime. The court has to give a verdict on whether I am right or wrong."
He asserted his ownership to the song and bashed the acts of Dhurandhar's team. Speaking to the outlet, Rai stated, "It's my creation that has gone into Dhurandhar. Have I earned anything out of it? No. Have they thanked me? No. Have they taken permission? No. In my opinion, it's a theft, and these people are thieves. You didn't create or record the song, then how are you using it. I've created, produced, and recorded the song. I have paid lyricist Anand Bakshi and Viju Shah for the music. I own the song."
The whole song controversy
Song Tirchi Topiwale was shot for Tridev and conceptualized on Madhuri Dixit, Sonam and Sangeeta Bijlani. Penned by Anand Bakshi and composed by Kalyanji-Anandji, the song became immensely popular. The song features in the climax of Dhurandhar: The Revenge, and a remix version is also seen in the film's music album.
Rajiv Rai's company, Trimurti Films, has initiated a legal action against Jio Studios and B62 Studios, the production houses behind Dhurandhar 2, as well as T-Series, which holds the film's music rights, regarding the song's usage.
About Rajiv Rai's Tridev
For the unversed, Tridev, released in 1989, was a box office hit with its chartbuster songs becoming successful as well. Starring Naseeruddin Shah, Sunny Deol, Jackie Shroff, Madhuri Dixit, Sonam, Sangeeta Bijlani, Anupam Kher and Amrish Puri, the film was helmed by Rajiv Rai and backed by his father, Gulshan Rai.