Although it’s been almost two years since the movie came out, ‘3 Idiots’ just does not seem to be able to free itself of controversy. The latest claim of wrongful and plagiaristic acts by director Rakjumar Hirani comes from a very unlikely source, Thapar University, Patiala.
Some very well placed sources inside the university have shared with us that the legal team at Thapar University is preparing for a very high profile suit against the director. They say that the legal complaint will be against the flagrant and totally uncredited use of the notorious ‘tanki’, a recently declared national monument, in his film, ‘3 Idiots’.
For all those unaware of what it is (shame on you, by the way); the ‘tanki’ is a very beloved landmark at Thapar University, and a source of pride for all those associated with it. The tanki’s rich and colourful history includes many memorable incidents, the first of which occurred almost 35 years ago, when it was first…uh, erected.
In the film, the three protagonists are shown committing vile acts such as drinking, atop the structure.
Roshan ‘Tankiwala’ Yadav, the designer of this historical monument, had this to say about the controversy – ‘Yes, of course I’m with the University on this issue, just look at the movie for god’s sake! Those scenes that are depicted on top of that…monstrous imitation (in the movie) are blasphemous! I had entered the movie hall with my family that day, 2 years ago, like any Indian movie-goer, to be entertained, goddamnit, entertained! And when I saw that my…my tanki had been so flagrantly ripped off in the movie, I was unable to continue to watch and I had to run away, crying, from the theatre…I ran away! Even though we had come in a car, I just ran and ran, and cried and cried I was so shocked! They say they found me two days later at the tanki, lying asleep with one of its pillars in my arms.’
At this point, Mr.Yadav became highly emotional and was unable to continue the interview. He is currently recovering from shock at Thapar University’s own dispensary, where he has been for the last 2 years, within sight of the tanki, under the care of its highly…highly qualified doctors(???).
Rajkumar Hirani looked rather nervous and jittery as we interviewed him about this latest controversy.
‘I…I have no idea what these…people are talking about. I mean…there…there are ‘tanki’s all over India…I mean…ok, so it’s strange that an engineering college happens to have a famous ‘tanki’ as well…but, there are a…I don’t know, please stop asking me all these questions.’ These were the kind of nervous ramblings that we managed to get out of him. He seemed okay for the first few seconds of the interview, and we even had our cameras rolling then, but soon it was apparent that something sinister was going on. Mr.Hirani told us to turn off our cameras if we wanted to continue the interview.
This is all we managed to get.
Well, the facts are out there. If you ask this reporter, I’d say Mr.Hirani, sir, you’re going down!
The decision, but, is now for the courts to make. The Thapar organization, though, has made it pretty clear that they are going to put all their resources into the case. Infact, one rumor suggests that a few of the Thapar swiss bank accounts have been emptied, and assets liquefied as the Thapar organization prepares for the trial of the century.
