Mumbai: Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma says Sascha Sippy, the original Sholay copyright holder adamant on seeing the maverick director in jail for copyright infringement, would be ideal to write dialogues for his next film.
"With his fertile imagination, aggressive attitude and way with words, he'd be ideal to write dialogues for movies. And I'd be happy to let him do the needful in my next film, provided he can look beyond his uncle's Sholay," Varma said.
Last month, Sippy Films Private Limited and Sholay Media and Entertainment Private Limited, owned by Sascha and Shan Uttam Singh, filed a suit seeking a stay on the release of Varma's film.
They maintained that the use of the name Sholay by any other entity amounts to infringement of trademark and copyright.
Varma was reacting to Sascha's statement, "Ramu cannot utter the words Sholay, Gabbar or Basanti. And if he does, by not respecting the court orders, I will see him in jail."
"I didn't know Sascha Sippy was the judge in this case. I guess I'll have to respect his ruling and proceed to jail," Varma retorted.
"The rule of law in the land is very sacred to me. And I'd never break it. I'm not infringing any copyright and I'm not going against any law by making my film. Beyond that the matter is sub judice,” he added.
"I believe Sascha Sippy has forbidden me from uttering the word Sholay. If that was against copyright laws, most of us would be prosecuted. We've grown up with Sholay and it's an inherent part of our cinema lexicon," he said.
After two major remakes Don and Umrao Jaan and the response to them, is Varma apprehensive about Sholay?
"What's the connection between a remake and original and the audience liking the film? They don't go to a film with the baggage of the past. If remakes have proved unsafe, originals aren't exactly foolproof either. Please, see my film before nailing me," he said.
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