New Delhi

The teaser of Alia Bhatt's latest film, Jigra, has got her fans curious about the unique plot. The film talks about sibling bonds, and the lengths a sister can go to save and protect her young brother. Alia plays elder sister to Vedang Raina in the film, which is posing to be an action-drama. But is the film's plot a re-hash of a 1990s Bollywood film? 

According to a report in the Bollywood Hungama, Jigra is an adaptation of the 1993 film Gumrah. The film starred Sridevi, Sanjay Dutt and Rahul Roy in key roles. 

“Jigra is an adaptation of the 1993 film Gumrah. It starred Sanjay Dutt, Sridevi, and Rahul Roy and was the story of a man who went to insane lengths to save his lover, who was imprisoned in a foreign country. Jigra makers decided to remake Gumrah but with certain modifications. Two of the biggest changes they have made from the story of the original is that here it’s the girl who’s saving the boy. Also, instead of them being lovers, they are siblings,” a source told the entertainment portal.

Incidentally, Gumrah was produced by Karan Johar's father, Yash Johar. Jigra is co-produced by Johar and Alia Bhatt. Gumraah was directed by Alia's father Mahesh Bhatt. 

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“Securing the rights of Gumrah wasn’t a problem. After all, it was produced by Dharma Productions, who have also produced Jigra. The scenario reminds one of Dharma Productions’ Agneepath (1990) which was remade by Karan Johar in 2012 with Hrithik Roshan, Priyanka Chopra, and Sanjay Dutt in the leading roles. Interestingly, Gumrah was directed by Mahesh Bhatt, and now his daughter Alia plays the lead in its adaptation,” the source said.

However, another source told Times Now that Jigra is an original story. "Apart from the fact that the protagonist is jailed in Gumrah and Jigra — Sridevi in the former and Vedang Raina in the latter—and both are prison-break stories, there is no similarity between the two films. Vasan Bala is known to be a fiercely original craftsman. Have you seen his Mard Ko Dard Nahin Hota and Monica O My Darling? Is it possible for the director of these films to copy a flop Mahesh Bhatt film, and that one, which was a copy itself," said the source.

Jigra, produced by Viacom18 Studios, Dharma Productions, and Alia Bhatt and Shaheen Bhatt, is directed by Vasan Bala and will be released on October 11.