The upcoming film Haq, starring Yami Gautam Dhar and Emraan Hashmi, has hit a legal snag just days before its scheduled release on 7 November.
The Madhya Pradesh High Court is hearing a case filed by Siddiqua Begum Khan, daughter of Shah Bano Begum, who alleges that the movie borrows heavily from her mother’s life without any permission from the family.
The film, directed by Suparn S Varma and produced by Junglee Pictures in association with Baweja Studios, revisits the historic 1985 Supreme Court verdict in Mohd Ahmed Khan vs Shah Bano Begum.
That judgment was a turning point in Indian legal history. It established that a divorced Muslim woman could seek financial support from her ex-husband under Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code, a law that applies to all communities.
In the story, Yami Gautam plays Shazia Bano, a woman inspired by Shah Bano’s real-life struggle, while Emraan Hashmi portrays Abbas, her estranged husband.
Jigna Vora’s book Bano: Bharat Ki Beti inspired the movie.
During a recent hearing at the Indore bench of Justice Pranay Verma, Siddiqua’s lawyer Tousif Warsi argued that the film closely mirrors Shah Bano’s personal story and distorts facts for drama.
Warsi told the court, “This movie is not just inspired—it’s like a full copy of Shah Bano’s private struggles. The teasers make her look bad and turn real suffering into made-up stories. We daughters never gave permission. The CBFC (Central Board of Film Certification) approved it without checking properly!”
In addition, he presented a prior legal notice sent to both the producers and the CBFC.
Producers Cite Fictional Disclaimer
According to the petition, the trailer combines fictional scenes with real events while retaining the original names and context.
The producers responded by pointing to the disclaimer that states Haq is a fictional interpretation based on publicly accessible court records. They further argued that since it is not an authorised biography, they did not need formal consent.
Lawyers for the CBFC supported this view, saying any material drawn from public documents can be used in creative works as long as it causes no personal harm.
Justice Verma observed that the portrayal acknowledges Shah Bano’s fight for justice rather than defaming her.
However, since the court had not yet received a copy of the film’s disclaimer, the hearing remains deferred.
The judge has asked the producers to submit the disclaimer in court at the next session. The court will hear the case again on Tuesday.
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