A feud worthy of a Bollywood extravaganza is brewing between two top talents in the genre.
Esmail Darbar has struck out at A R Rahman, claiming the Oscar winner lifted compositions and bought off Academy voters. Darbar did not mince words or beat around the bush when slinging the accusations- Darbar went straight to some Indian tabloids and dished serious alleged dirt on his competition:
In a report in Tuesday’s edition of the Indian tabloid Mid Day that the Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam composer also claims that he has proof that the Oscar-winning tune Jai Ho is not an original work.
“Rahman is a very good businessman, he knows how to handle his public relations. I will yet again say that he has bought the Oscar,” Darbar was quoted as saying.
“I have proof that Jai Ho is not his. It has been done by someone else. All the big film-makers like Subhash Ghai, Mani Ratnam know about it,” he added.
Vijay Iyer, a member of Rahman’s team, has spoken out in defense of the Oscar winner. Iyer says that while Rahman won Oscars for Slumdog Millionaire, he also was nominated this year for another Danny Boyle flick:
“If someone says he has bought the Oscars, how does he explain his Oscar nomination for 127 Hours ? We are all proud of everything that he has done,” Iyer was quoted in the same daily.
Rahman hasn’t acknowledged the accusations.
