Taapsee Pannu’s Gandhari lands in copyright controversy as Kanika Dhillon’s production house denies claims
Here's the latest update from the Bollywood world:
After Assi earlier this year, Taapsee Pannu is returning with Netflix thriller Gandhari . After the announcement, the soon-to-release movie has run into a copyright row just days before its September 3 rollout. Writer Kalyan Bandi claims the movie is similar to a story he wrote and registered back in 2019. The makers, however, have denied the allegation, stating that the movie is an original story written by Kanika Dhillon .
Adding to this, Gandhari copyright row: Writer seeks credit, claims Taapsee Pannu’s Netflix movie resembles his 2019 story. What Kalyan Bandi claims According to a report in India Today, Kalyan Bandi, an IIT Madras alumnus who works as an Inspector with the Central GST and Customs department, claims he wrote a story titled Gandhari in 2019. He says the story centred on a mother who transforms into a fierce, almost goddess-like figure while trying to save her child from a child-trafficking racket.
Meanwhile, Kalyan claims he pitched the story to Monika Shergill in 2019, when she was associated with Voot and is now a Vice President at Netflix. He says he first reached out to her on LinkedIn and later shared an eight-page story along with a two-page synopsis. According to him, while the material was acknowledged, he was eventually told that the concept did not fit the company’s commissioning slate at the time.
Notably, He says he subsequently registered the story with the Screenwriters Association and continued developing it. In 2023, Kalyan approached Baweja Studios, where discussions around the project allegedly continued for several months. He also says he submitted the concept to JioHotstar.
As per the latest buzz, View this post on Instagram Why the Netflix announcement raised questions Kalyan shared the row began after Netflix revealed Gandhari in 2025. The title caught his attention, and he claimed he then started comparing the soon-to-release movie with the story he had written several years earlier. He shared the similarities, particularly the title, made him question whether his concept had been used. Speaking about the title, he shared, "Only I can connect the title to the concept because it was my creativity. How can it be credited to Kanika Dhillon?"
In further updates, He also claimed that the announcement had an impact on the conversations he was having with production houses and caused him both professional and financial setbacks. In September 2025, he sent a legal notice seeking around ₹ 40 lakh in compensation, along with credit for his work. But according to him, getting money was never really the point. He added, " I don't even want money. Just say thank you and acknowledge that it was my idea. I'll be very happy if they can prove to me that this is not my story.”
On top of that, He added that there was no response to his legal notice and the matter never went to court. He shared taking the case forward would have meant spending a considerable amount of money on a lengthy legal battle, something he could not afford as a government employee. He eventually decided not to pursue the matter further.
Kanika Dhillon’s production house, Kathha Pictures, has dismissed Bandi’s allegations, calling them baseless. The makers have reiterated that Gandhari is an original story and urged people not to treat the claims as fact.
Source: Hindustan Times