Homebound vs Homebound: Author Accuses Dharma Film of Copyright Infringement

Independent journalist Puja Changoiwala sent a legal notice to Dharma Productions Pvt. Ltd and Netflix India LLP on October 15, 2025, alleging copyright infringement of her 2021 book, Homebound – chronicling the journey of a family of migrant labourers from Mumbai to Rajasthan. 

Co-incidentally, a feature film directed by Neeraj Ghaywan, produced by Dharma Productions Pvt. Ltd., is titled the same as Changoiwala’s book and depicts similar fictionalised scenes of the unprecedented exodus that took place in 2020, weeks after a nationwide lockdown was imposed in India, forcing a section of the population to walk for thousands of kms back to their native villages.

One of the most acclaimed Indian films of 2025, Homebound was picked as India’s entry to the Oscars this year. Featuring Martin Scorsese as an executive producer, Ghaywan’s film is among the 15 contenders in line for a Best Foreign film nomination. The allegations have cast a cloud on the film’s otherwise storied run, beginning with its Cannes premiere around six months ago.  

Ghaywan’s film is credited as an adaptation of a story written by Basharat Peer in the New York Times (NYT), Taking Amrit Home. In the aforementioned legal notice, Changoiwala lists eight instances of similarities between her book and the film. 

In the list, one similarity is a line of dialogue – “Corona se baad mein, bhookh se pehle marr jaayenge”, which sounds like a line in Changoiwala’s book “Forget Corona, hunger will beat it in killing us.” In another scene towards the end of the film, the two primary characters are shown mercy by a woman residing in a home made of red bricks, unpainted walls, with a hand pump situated in front of the house. Changoiwala’s legal notice alleges that the visual is lifted from the description of her book, where her book’s characters are similarly shown kindness by strangers in a village.  

After receiving a response from Dharma Productions denying all allegations, Changoiwala’s legal representatives filed an application before the Maharashtra State Legal Services Authority under Section 12A of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 – the pre-institution mediation process, which is mandatory before a suit is filed in the Bombay high court. The application filed (made available to The Wire) under section 12A reveals Dharma’s response mentioning the film was developed in 2022, and registered in 2023. The book came out in November, 2021.

Changoiwala declined to comment on the matter, citing legal advice, while Dharma Productions issued the following statement: “The allegations of copyright infringement are unfounded, and Dharma categorically denies the same. A legal notice has been received and duly responded to by Dharma’s legal counsel. Homebound is an officially licensed adaptation inspired by the New York Times article by Basharat Peer, with all requisite rights lawfully acquired and due credit duly provided. Dharma has become aware through media reports of an alleged pre-suit mediation before the Hon’ble Bombay High Court; however, no formal communication has been received to date. Dharma is adopting a firm legal position and, as the matter is sub judice, will not comment further.” 

Neeraj Ghaywan was embroiled in another case earlier, when author/journalist Yashica Dutt accused the writer-director of using her life story in the second season of Made In Heaven, in an episode centred around Radhika Apte playing a Dalit academic residing abroad. Later, Ghaywan clarified that Dutt’s book, Coming out as a Dalit (2019) – the title of the book featured as a passing dialogue in Ghaywan’s episode – was among the influences, but not the only one. The incident triggered a sticky debate around what counts as knowledge available in the public sphere, and what requires attribution, with no clear answers. 

Even if one were to ignore the serendipity of Ghaywan’s film bearing the same name as Changoiwala’s book (which came out four years earlier), what remains to be debated is what counts as generic fact, and what qualifies as specific context, given that there was such comprehensive coverage of the migrant labour crisis.

The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.