Laapataa Ladies row: Did Kiran Rao copy Arabic film Burqa City?

Mumbai: Some movies become big hits but later face serious questions about originality. Over the years, many successful films have been accused of copying stories from other movies. Now, one more film has joined that list — Laapataa Ladies, India’s official entry for the 2025 Oscars.

What’s the Issue?

Laapataa Ladies is directed by Kiran Rao and produced by Aamir Khan. It tells the story of two brides who are accidentally swapped during a train journey. One husband, Deepak, begins a search to find his real bride, leading to a mix of emotions and humor.

Recently, a video went viral online, showing scenes from a 2019 Arabic short film called Burqa City. In that film, a newly married man realizes he brought home the wrong bride, as all women wear burqas. Many people noticed that the storyline and even some scenes in both movies are very similar.

This is how Kiran Rao, ex-wife of Aamir Khan, turned everything bad about Burqa into everything wrong with Ghunghat.

Kiran Rao shamelessly copied Burqa City (2019) and made Laapataa Ladies (2023).

Disappointingly, many right minded people fell for this. pic.twitter.com/BsnOzLgZ8J

— Tushar ॐ♫₹ (@Tushar_KN) April 1, 2025

Kiran Rao's Lapata Ladies, India's official entry to the Oscars and projected as an original work, actually seems heavily inspired by a 2019 short film titled Burqa City.

Set in Middle East, the 19 min film follows a newlywed man whose wife gets exchanged due to identical… pic.twitter.com/b7GcHN2MmI

— THE SKIN DOCTOR (@theskindoctor13) March 31, 2025

People React Online

Social media is full of questions. Some users said it looks like a copy. Others feel the theme of identity and women in society is common and can be told in many ways.

So what will you call it? Inspiration or Copy?

— Chintan Panchal (@chintan5900) March 31, 2025

Inspired or copied 😆

— CHiCorying Life (@FashionChicory) April 1, 2025

Bollywood is so cooked, they send copy-paste movies to the Oscars with zero shame. (Laapataa Ladies and Gully Boy is an example)

— ･͛𝕜･͛ 🦑 (@kundanvyas1) April 1, 2025

Back in 2024, filmmaker Ananth Mahadevan also said the film looked similar to his 1999 movie Ghoonghat Ke Pat Khol, which also had a bride mix-up story.

Laapataa Ladies has won many awards and got great reviews, but this new controversy could affect its Oscar journey. The filmmakers have not responded yet. Everyone is waiting to see what they’ll say.

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