Author Whose Book Alia Bhatt's Raazi Was Based On Reacts To Requests Of Remaking The Movie With Yami Gautam: Appointing Meghna Gulzar Was My Gravest Misjudgment

Following the release of Aditya Dhar's dulogy Dhurandhar, there has been heightened conversation around cross-border spy thriller movies and Bollywood films based on the India-Pakistan relationship so far. Amid the craze for the Ranveer Singh starrer and the box office performance of the juggernaut, author  Harinder Sikka, whose book Calling Sehmat inspired Meghna Gulzar's 2018 movie Raazi, took to his X account to pen multiple posts bashing the filmmaker and the final product.

He took to his X account to share a photo of several books stacked together, with his novel Calling Sehmat right at the top. Along with the photo, he wrote, “Calling Sehmat #Raazi ranks among the top books on espionage ever written, globally. It exposes Pakistan across the border, hostile forces in Bollywood, & a Punjab-based criminals within. Appointing Meghna Gulzar was my gravest misjudgment. Despite clear warnings, I failed to foresee how ideological bias would end up diminishing the true spirit of the protagonist. Nearly two decades later, the book continues to leave its mark across the world. Penguin best sellers; Vichhoda, Gobind, The Chabimaster are being scripted, for our beautiful nation deserves to see the complete truth.”

However, his attacks on the filmmaker did not stop here. The author reshared and responded to all users who mentioned the book and the Bollywood filmmaker. When a user blamed him for waking up to the truth too late, he wrote, "I agree with you. It was my fault. I was told by many people not to trust Meghna Gulzar, that she was a leftist, etc. But I couldn’t believe it.  Now I remember the golden words I should’ve learnt from before. ‘Trust, but verify.’"  

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Another fan requested the author to remake the movie with Yami Gautam in the lead role. To this, Sikka wrote, "Sir, I don’t need money. Check up my background. But thanks for your offer. Indeed, Yami is a great actor.  Her best is yet to come." However, in another query, he refused to comment on the possibility of a remake of the film. He also brought up Meghna Gulzar's Sam Bahadur and wrote, “The way Meghna Gulzar twisted the story through a leftist lens still pains me deeply. Film on the legendary Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw was no different. All the ugly #CONgress acts of ill treating the Field Marshal were missing. What kind of mindset diminishes patriots by bending truth to suit an agenda?”

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This is not the first time the author has shared his angst with Meghna publicly. In 2020, he first noted that the filmmaker took several liberties and twisted the narratives of his book in the film. He also alleged that he was not properly credited. Meghna Gulzar has never responded to the allegations. 


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