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Gangopadhyay picks up the gauntlet

Onkar Singh in New Delhi

Noted Bengali writer Sunil Gangopadhayay today joined issues with controversial film maker Deepa Mehta on whether she had indulged in plagiarism while writing the script of her yet-to-be-shot film Water.

"I had so far refrained from saying that she had indulged in plagiarism. Now that she is threatening to go to the court and drag my publishers and me into a legal battle, I am forced to say that she has indeed plagiarised [my script]." Sunil Gangopadhyay told rediff.com.

Gandopahayay, who is New Delhi to attend a seminar, said David Hamiliton, the producer of the film, had been calling him up and asking him to hurry up and give them a clean chit.

"He did not threaten me in so many words but he did insist that I should quickly go through the script and give it one of his messengers who was coming to collect it from my house. I told me that since I had taken the script from the government of West Bengal, I would return it to the government," he said.

Asked if he had, at any stage, given Deepa Mehta a clean chit, Gangopadhyay said that he was actually surprised to see press reports in this regard appearing in various newspaper.

"I was in Shantiniketan when the press note reached the newspaper offices. As far as I am concerned, I have not given her a clean chit. On the contrary, I find many similarities in the English translation of my novel Shei Samoy [and the script]. Even the end of my novel and the script is the same. In both cases, a woman commits suicide by jumping into the river while a 50-year-old man watches her dive into the water. The names of the characters and some dialogues have been lifted word for word. Aruna Chakaravarty, who has translated my novel from Bengali to English, is emphatic that there are endless parallels between the script and the novel. My publishers and lawyers are going through the script and they will take suitable action in due course," he said.

The writer felt the whole matter could have been settled amicably if Deepa Mehta has not resorted to bullying tactics.

"She met me twice. First she came and told me that she had been inspired by my novel and some other books to write the script. Later, when the [truth] started coming out, she met me again. This time my publishers were also present. She told me that she had lifted anything from my book. She asked me to get a copy of the script from the West Bengal government and see for myself if she had indulged in plagiarism.

"Now she is threatening to go to the court. We will now fight the battle in the court," he said.

Gandopahdayay said that, unlike Hindu fundamentalists, he would like the see the film shot and completed provided Deepa Mehta sorted out the matter with him and his publishers regarding the copyright first.

"I am not asking for money. All that I want is that she should acknowledge the sources and give me the credit because I still have the film rights with me," he said.

Talking about Mehta's charge that he himself had indulged in plagiarism by lifting the story from Rabindranath Tagore, he said "She should remember that my novel is set at a time when Tagore would have been just nine years old. There is no question of my lifting things from Rabindranath Tagore," he said, adding he was not hurt by the incident, just surprised.

Translator Aruna Chakaravarty said Deepa Mehta is now claiming that her script was in English.

"As far as I remember she has merely translated the English script into Hindi. On one hand she claims that Gandopadhayay has exonerated her and the same day she goes to the court and file a writ in the court. Isn't it amazing," he said.

Deepa Mehta's brother, Dilip Mehta, told rediff.com that "Deepa has great respect of Gangopadhayay and will continue to hold him in high esteem. She has no vendetta against the author and did not want to impose a legal battle on him. Some misguided elements have been doing mischief. She didn't want to go to the courts but she has been forced to do so. You should remember that it was she who went to see him in Calcutta because she believed in transparency," he said.

Asked if Deepa was still willing settle the matter amicably, Dilip Mehta said, "We have now given our response and it for the author to make the next move.

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