Half of the legendary music directors “Jatin-Lalit”, Lalit Pandit say the composers who wrote those songs (Nadeem-Shravan) didn’t create them. Lalit says they took music from Pakistani tracks instead of making their own. This isn’t the first time someone said this, but it brings the whole thing back up for discussion again.
In a surprising turn of events, renowned Indian music producer Lalit Pandit, part of the famous composer duo Jatin-Lalit, has accused fellow composers Nadeem-Shravan of copying songs from Pakistani music for the iconic 1990 film Aashiqui.
During an interview with Bollywood Hungama, Pandit revealed that the beloved soundtrack of Aashiqui, directed by Mahesh Bhatt, wasn’t entirely original. He claimed, “Nadeem would go to Dubai, buy Pakistani cassettes, and reproduce the songs here. The entire industry knows this.”
Pandit emphasized that many of the Aashiqui songs were actually Pakistani tracks with minor changes. He explained, “The music of a composer should reflect their style. Our music, for example, has a distinct Jatin-Lalit feel because we created everything ourselves.”
When asked if Jatin-Lalit ever took inspiration from other music, Lalit acknowledged that while inspiration is common, outright copying is different. “Jatin was a truly original composer. He might get inspired, but he never lifted an entire song,” he said.
A Lucky Franchise
The original Aashiqui starred Rahul Roy and Annu Agarwal, making them overnight stars. Songs like “Bas Ek Sanam Chaahiye” and “Dheere Dheere” are etched in the memories of generations of Bollywood fans.
The sequel, Aashiqui 2, featuring Aditya Roy Kapur and Shraddha Kapoor, also saw great success. Recently, talks of Aashiqui 3 with Triptii Dimri and Kartik Aaryan surfaced, but the project is reportedly facing legal issues.
Nadeem-Shravan, who passed away in 2006 and 2021 respectively, are not around to defend themselves against these accusations. The extent to which Pakistani music influenced the Aashiqui soundtrack remains unclear.
Some fans are surprised by the allegations, while others point out the similarities between certain Aashiqui songs and Pakistani music from the era.
This revelation by Lalit Pandit has sparked discussions in the music and film industry, shedding new light on the origins of some of Bollywood’s most cherished songs.
