New Delhi: Dalit author Yashica Dutt turned to social media on August 15 to criticise the producers of ‘Made In Heaven Season 2’ for using her life narrative without her permission and credit. According to the author, Radhika Apte's episode was an inspiration from her life. However, the show's creators, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti and director Neeraj Ghaywan took to social media to deny Yashica's claim in a lengthy post. They said that Radhika Apte's role is fictional in the series.
'Made In Heaven 2' is a series about wedding planners, and each episode focuses on a different wedding. The show's writers and producers shared an official statement in which they refuted plagiarism claims.
The statement reads: "We are deeply disturbed with the misleading reports and comments in context of author Yashica Dutt claiming formal credit for her contributions to Made In Heaven, a show set around wedding planners and remarkable brides who challenge prejudices deeply ingrained in our society."
Neeraj Ghaywan, Alankrita Shrivastava, Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti also explained how Radhika is different from Yashica and her book Coming Out as Dalit. They wrote, “In Episode 5 – ‘The Heart Skips A Beat’, we peek into the life of Pallavi Menke a fictional character. Pallavi Menke is a Maharashtrian Ambedkarite from the Vidarbha region who studied law at Columbia University. She grew up using a caste-neutral surname and was called Pallavi Kumar. She has now reclaimed her original surname, Menke a signifier of her true identity as a member of the Dalit community. Pallavi Menke is an academic who teaches at Columbia and is likely to be tenured as a professor.”
Read the full statement here:
Made in Heaven Season 2 is available on Amazon Prime Video.