Taapsee Pannu's Gandhari faces plagiarism row: Writer claims film copied his 2019 script, seeks Rs 40 lakh in compensation

Actor Taapsee Pannu's upcoming film Gandhari has landed in trouble just a week before its release. Days after the first look of the film was revealed, it has found itself in the middle of a copyright controversy.

The Netflix thriller, set to premiere on September 3, is facing plagiarism allegations by a Mumbai-based writer who claims he had pitched a similar script to the makers. However, Kathha Pictures, the production house behind the film, has denied the accusations.

Taapsee Pannu's Gandhari faces plagiarism row

Mumbai-based writer Kalyan Bandi has reportedly accused the makers of plagiarising his story, which he had pitched to the makers in 2024. He accused that they had taken his idea and developing a new script under director Kanika Dhillon’s name.

Bandi, an IIT Madras alumnus who currently works as an Inspector with the Central GST and Customs department, claims he wrote and registered a story titled Gandhari in 2019. The story, according to him, revolves around a mother who takes on the avatar of a fierce goddess after getting caught up in a child-trafficking racket. Speaking to India Today, he revealed that he had reached out to Netflix Vice President Monika Shergill with the story back in 2019, when she was working with Voot. Back then, he shared an eight-page story and a two-page Gandhari synopsis.

Continuously raising questions over the movie, he had also taken legal action, and had sent the notice seeking financial compensation and credit. In September 2025. He has also shared that the script was not approved back then, saying that it didn't fit the company's commissioning slate. Bandi has also registered the story and synopsis with the Screenwriters Association and was working on the idea. In 2023, he also reached out to Baweja Studios, where the discussions happened on the movie. He has shared his pitch with JioHotstar. He has sought around Rs 40 lakh as compensation.

Makers have denied the claims

Soon after these allegations went viral, the production house released a statement saying that the movie is an original piece of work by the writer and director.

Denying the claims, the makers released a statement on Instagram, reading,''Our attention has been drawn to allegations circulating on social media and in certain publications to the effect that our forthcoming film “Gandhari” copies another person’s concept and uses that person’s title.”

Saying that these allegations are false, they wrote, “We deny them unequivocally. “Gandhari” is an original work, written and produced by Ms Kanika Dhillon and developed by Kathha Pictures. Its story and screenplay are Ms Dhillon’s own work.”

Concluding the statement, they urged media, and digital platforms to consider this news as false. “We request the media, digital platforms and members of the public to treat these allegations as what they are, namely unverified and false, and to refrain from publishing, circulating or repeating them as established fact.”

What will Gandhari be about?

Set against a fictitious town, Joypurra, Gandhari is a story of Bani, a mother whose devotion is tested at every turn as she's on a search for her daughter. The movie has an acclaimed ensemble cast featuring Ishwak Singh, Chhaya Kadam, Swastika Mukherjee, Mita Vashisht and Jatin Sarna.