Bestselling author alleges Bollywood film copied his novel without credit

Jeffrey Archer, the internationally acclaimed British author, accused Bollywood of plagiarizing his work when the film 'Ladies Versus Ricky Bahl' released in 2011. The film, directed by Maneesh Sharma, allegedly drew its storyline from Archer's 1976 novel 'Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less' without proper attribution.

According to Archer's claim, both works share a strikingly similar narrative structure. In each story, a group of individuals who have been defrauded by a con artist band together to devise an elaborate scheme to teach their swindler a lesson. The thematic and plot similarities between the novel and film proved difficult to ignore for those familiar with Archer's original work.

The allegation highlighted longstanding concerns about intellectual property protection and creative originality in Indian cinema. Such disputes, while not uncommon in the film industry globally, underscored the ongoing tension between international copyright holders and domestic filmmakers regarding source material attribution and adaptation rights.

Archer's claims did not result in widely publicized legal action at the time, but the author's public statements drew attention to the broader issue of how literary works are adapted and credited in Bollywood productions. The incident served as a reminder of the importance of proper licensing and attribution when adapting existing creative works across different media and international markets.