The director-producer clears the air surrounding his upcoming film and denies allegations of having copied the idea for his production.
With films like O21 (2014) and Moor (2015) to his credit, director Jamshed Mahmood, popularly known as Jami, released the 90-second trailer of his upcoming production Jugnu, last week. Since then, the acclaimed filmmaker has been surrounded by the controversy of having copied the idea for the film from Ahmad Baig, a student of National College of Arts (NCA).
The Lahore-based student took to social media and stated that in 2016 he made a film, titled Ibbo Ki Eid, for his university thesis and claimed that Jami’s upcoming production, Jugnu, looks similar to his work. Moreover, the NCA student posted a side-by-side comparison of his film against Jugnu’s trailer.
In response, Jami took to his official Twitter handle to clear the air surrounding the controversy.
Talking to Instep about the growing controversy, Jami Mahmood denied all such allegations and said, “Ahmad Baig is claiming that I was on the NCA jury and I saw the film. But that is not the case; I was not a part of the jury the year Ahmad’s film was screened.”
According to the filmmaker, the research and initial talks with Jugnu’s writer and director Ali Abbas Naqvi started back in 2014, almost two years before Ibbo ki Eid.
“Jugnu is about my personal experience. When I was eight years old we got a goat at home and I just wouldn’t let my parents kill it. So, it is actually mind boggling that a student is accusing me of plagiarism.”
He added, “I believe that the film doesn’t even exist as it is not available online; there is no DVD or CD to prove that I have copied it. I contacted Ahmad to clarify this confusion and when I asked him where the film is, he said that it is with him and that it has not been released as yet. So how can I copy something that I haven’t seen?”
Jami further went on to state that he tried explaining it to Ahmad that if two shots are similar, it is mere coincidence and at times you find similarities whether it is the story or different shots. “What is he trying to prove when the film doesn’t exist?” said Jami.
While the intriguing trailer follows the story a young boy and his goat and has some amazing visuals, Jugnu is set in the province of Sindh and is a fascinating tale of love, loss and selflessness.
“Jugnu is all about finding oneself and how to be selfless. I believe that the Sindh region and its people are lost somewhere mainly because of corruption and the wadera system that prevails in the province. The film revolves around not giving up and finding your own roots,“ Jami told Instep in an earlier interview.
Jugnu has been directed by Ali Abbas Naqvi under Jami’s Azadfilm Company banner. Let’s see how things unfold for Jami’s upcoming venture.
