Murder, tacky, ruin. Pakistanis are angry over Ayushmann Khurrana and Malaika Arora’s new film that recycles and remixes Nazia Hasan’s epic disco hit Aap Jaisa Koi from the 1980s.
Aap Jaisa Koi, the latest song from Ayushmann Khurrana’s upcoming movie Action Hero, has created quite a stir online. Pakistani fans on the internet are unimpressed with yet another Bollywood remix on a classic hit song. The video, which features Khurrana and Malaika Arora, was released Saturday and had both Bollywood celebrities dancing to the disco beats of Nazia Hassan’s 1980 hit song, which was written for Zeenat Aman’s movie Qurbani.
While many were thrilled to see Malaika Arora on screen after her long break, fans could not help but express their frustration with the treatment meted out to the hit song of the 80s.
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Classic or classic catastrophe?
Songwriter Tanishk Bagchi’s remix has started a debate on the need for Bollywood to make remixes and ‘ruin’ Pakistani hit songs. Some of the Pakistani fans have called it a murder of the original, tacky and yet another masterpiece that Bollywood has copied. Fans demand Bollywood to make their own music and stop ‘copying’ well-known Pakistani hits. Furthermore, fans are displeased with Malaika Arora’s role and, according to them, Zeenat Aman’s shoes are too big to be filled.
Earlier this year, Bollywood upset Pakistani fans after recreating Abrar ul Haq’s Nach Punjabun in the Anil Kapoor starrer, JuggJugg Jeeyo. In May this year, Haq had accused filmmaker Karan Johar and his Dharma Productions of stealing his music. In a tweet, Abrar said that in Karan’s upcoming film Jugjugg Jeeyo, the latter had copied his song Nach Panjaban.
Abrar’s tweet read, “I have not sold my song ‘Nach Punjaban’ to any Indian movie and reserve the rights to go to court to claim damages. Producers like @karanjohar should not use copy songs. This is my 6th song being copied which will not be allowed at all. @DharmaMovies @karanjohar.” In another tweet the singer wrote, “Song ‘Nach Punjaban’ has not been licensed to any one. If someone is claiming it, then produce the agreement. I will be taking legal action #NachPunjaban.”
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Nazia Hassan- the nightingale of Pakistan
Nazia Hassan shot to fame when she sang Aap Jaisa Koi for Qurbani in 1980. The overnight sensation was also the youngest person to receive the Filmfare award for Best Female Playback Singer for this song. Nazia was just 15.
She and Zoheb Hassan, her brother, came to be Pakistan’s most iconic pop duo. Their well-remembered hit albums included Disco Deewane and Young Tarang. Often heralded as the nightingale of Pakistan, her fan following transcended boundaries, thereby leaving fans dissatisfied about the latest remix.