Akshay Kumar irked quite a few people, and with good reason, with the first song from his upcoming film Toilet: Ek Prem Katha. The video for Has Mat Pagli shows Kumar’s character Keshav stalking his on-screen crush Jaya (Bhumi Pednekar) and filming her with his mobile without her knowledge. Keshav’s efforts seem to have paid off, since the new song Bakheda shows him and Jaya all giddy in love.
Sung by Sukhwinder Singh and Sunidhi Chauhan and composed by Vickey Prasad, Bakheda is a generic romantic duet in which Keshav and Jaya are seen in the throes of pre-wedding courtship. Written by Siddharth-Garima (of Raabta fame) and directed by Shree Narayan Singh, Toilet: Ek Prem Katha is based on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet project Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. It shows Jaya leaving Keshav when she is inconvenienced by the lack of toilets at his home, and Keshav taking on the challenge of building toilets in his village. The movie will be released on August 11.
Sexism isn’t the only problem with Has Mat Pagli. The producer and director of the Rajasthani film Laadli has sent a legal notice to the makers of Toilet: Ek Prem Katha, accusing them of lifting a song of the same name that featured in his production, reported the DNA newspaper. Released on April 7, Laadli is a drama with the social message of saving girl children. The movie too has a song named Has Mat Pagli. However, except for the title, the Toilet: Ek Prem Katha track does not resemble its namesake in any way.
The film had earlier found itself in a separate copyright scuffle, when documentary filmmaker Praveen Vyas accused writers Siddharth and Garima of ripping off his short film Manini. The duo has also written the song Has Mat Pagli.