Nagin dance: Abrarul Haq says KJo not only 'copied' his song, he ‘ruined’ it

Singer plans to seek Rs1bn in damages from 'The Punjaban Song' makers.

Singer Abrarul Haq, who recently called out T-Series and Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions for lifting his 2002 hit Nach Punjaban for the filmmaker’s upcoming flick, Jugjugg Jeeyo, has now lambasted KJo for not only “copying”, but “ruining” his song.

While speaking to Independent Urdu, the singer stated, "If they really had to copy my song, they could have put in more effort. What a dud of a copy? They have not only ruined the tune, but also spoiled the dance moves.” He then asked, “What was the purpose of doing nagin dance on this song?”

Haq went on to elaborate on why he disliked the tweaked Indian version. “This type of Punjabi song, with a Punjabi touch, can only be sung by a typical Punjabi, and clearly Bollywood either didn’t have one or put in zero effort to find one.”

Continuing to shame what he feels was poor execution, Haq added, "I feel sorry that the song was picturized on so many big Bollywood stars, yet, the choreography and direction were so bad. Adding Punjabi dance steps to the track was the least they could have done." He went on to lament, “They got Salman Khan to dance to it for promotions and didn’t even ask him to do a single Punjabi step.”

Haq, once again, asserted that he has never sold his song's copyrights to anybody, and will file a lawsuit against KJo for stealing Nach Punjaban. “My attorneys are pursuing legal action in Pakistan, United Kingdom, and India, with a legal claim of Rs 1 billion in fines,” shared Haq. The Billo singer shared, "Bring any documentation you may have. I've made it apparent that the copyrights of this song have not been sold to anyone."

In response to a query, Haq acknowledged that when Nach Punjaban first released in Pakistan, there was backlash, because of which he was forced to alter the title from Nach Punjaban to Nach Majajan. He also recollected how Billo De Ghar sparked a similar furor, drawing criticism. And for his song Parveen, the Chief Justice of Supreme Court summoned him. He was told, “Parveen is a woman's name in every other household; how could you have made a song out of it?”

Haq concluded, "Similar issues recur in Pakistan but the current issue is that Bollywood has copied my song, and it is not the first time this has happened. But this will surely be the first time I go to court."

Earlier, in a video messaged shared on his social media, Haq had made it clear that he would not settle for a mere mention on a YouTube video when he did not lend his song to begin with. “Merely saying that the credit has been given makes no difference. I never gave you the song, I never gave anybody the rights to my song. It belongs to me so I'll get it back and I'm coming to the court, see you there!”

On May 28, KJo released the music video for The Punjaabban Song, which saw the JugJugg Jeeyo cast featuring Varun Dhawan, Anil Kapoor, Kiara Advani and Neetu Singh, dance to the popular chorus and hook of Haq's 2002 album Nach Punjaban’s title track. The video description mentioned the singers and lyricist behind the song. It saw Haq's name after Tanishk Bagchi. Both T-Series and Moviebox, who did not respond to Haq’s message on Twitter, had stated earlier that they “legally squired” Nach Punjaban. While written and performed by Haq, it is pertinent to mention here that Nach Punjaban is sourced to Moviebox Birmingham Limited on Spotify.

Have something to add to the story? Share it in the comments below.