Amid the massive success of Mirzapur: The Movie in its first week, the film has landed in controversy after big claims of copyright infringement. The controversy involves rapper Rapperiya Baalam and the makers of the action thriller, with the rapper alleging that the track Shoorveer was used in the film without his permission and questioning the rights.
Rapper Ashok Bishnoi, known by his stage name Rapperiya Baalam, claimed that Excel Entertainment used the song Shoorveer in the Mirzapur film without informing him, especially in a scene that seems to glorify gangsters.
Rapperiya said, “Some of you may ask why my heart is broken. You might say I should be happy because my song is in ‘Mirzapur’. But the ‘Mirzapur’ team did not take my permission to use my song. Who gave them the permission? I certainly did not.”
Expressing his hurt, he further revealed why the use of the song bothers him: “This song is dedicated to Maharana Pratap ji. They are using this song to glorify the villains in the movie. Is this right? If the ‘Mirzapur’ team had approached me and said, ‘Rapperiya bhai, we want to use your song, we would have given them 10 ideas. But taking the song without permission is not right.”
Lastly, he raised questions about who gave the makers the rights to use it and said, “I don’t know who gave you these rights or from whom you obtained them. Whoever gave you the rights, I would like you to ask them: Do you have any copyright?”
While the film’s makers, Excel Entertainment, didn’t respond to the claims, the music label Trouper Records set the record straight, saying it officially licensed “Shoorveer” to the production house. The post also credited the singer and composer Rapperiya Baalam: “Trouper Records is pleased to share that “Shoorveer” was officially licensed to Excel Entertainment for in-film use in Mirzapur: The Film. Congratulations to Excel Entertainment and the entire Mirzapur team on the release! @excelmovies.”
