Warner Bros. is turning a watchful (and legal) eye on Bollywood.
The studio is claiming an Indian film titled Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors (pictured), comes too close to the mega-blockbuster Harry Potter franchise.
"We registered the Hari Puttar title in 2005 and it's unfortunate that
Warner has chosen to file a case so close to our film's release," Munish Purii, of Mirchi Movies, the Mumbai-based studio behind the movie, told The Hollywood Reporter.
The lawsuit, filed last week, could stall the film's Sept. 12 premiere date in India.
But does the Bollywood film really run the risk of being mistaken as a clone of the series about a young British wizard?* Hari Putter's *synopsis describes a kid-friendly adventure to keep a computer chip out of the wrong hands -- more like a cross between Home Alone and *Spy Kids *than a rip-off of a gaggle of boarding school sorcerers. Not to mention "Hari" is a common Indian name and "Puttar" means "son" in Punjabi.
The case is slated to be heard in the Bombay High Court later this month.
[via BBC News]
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