Alam insists he didn’t write the original lyrics; the director of the Kannada film did. He says he even refused to write those kinds of lines at first, because he thought they’d be censored and wouldn’t be allowed. The film’s people just asked him to translate the Kannada words into Hindi. He says being connected with this controversial song is embarrassing, and points out that his good work on Hindi versions of successful films doesn’t get attention, but this song did – and for the wrong reasons. He cares about his good name as a lyricist.
How the song sparked a backlash
Alam says he did a very close translation of the Kannada words and even told the film crew the song would be censored. He mentions that words like “Choosega” and “chaatega” are already in the original Kannada, and the filmmakers wanted him to keep their exact meaning so they could fit the lines into the rhythm of the song. The song also tricks you: you only find out at the very end that it’s about a bottle of alcohol, but the earlier lines make you think of something much more vulgar. Alam is asking why he should be blamed for words he didn’t write and originally said no to.
After all the complaints, the film people took the Hindi song off their official online page to try to make people less angry while they figured out what to do. People in the industry and organizations asked for clearer responsibility for creative content and for the film certification board to say exactly what it thinks about this sort of thing. The debate brought up bigger issues: who is responsible for translated lyrics, how much do directors and producers check things, and can lyricists be unfairly blamed when lots of people contribute to a piece of work?
Raqueeb Alam’s denial and explanation
Alam says the filmmakers contacted him again and asked him to do a new, less controversial translation. He did it quickly and sent it to them, and they started recording it almost right away. The idea is to release this cleaned-up version with a note saying sorry to the audience. This shows they’re trying to fix their image and respond to how people feel, without getting rid of the song completely, and they seem to think a changed lyric will stop the problem.
Translation role and specific objections
This whole situation shows how there’s tension between the people making a film, the job of translation, and what the public thinks is okay. Translators and lyricists are often put in a difficult position of having to be true to the original text but also make it acceptable to a new audience. And when something goes wrong, people start pointing fingers and reputations can be damaged. In the future, film productions might have tighter control over how things are edited, how people are credited, and how things are approved for translated lyrics. This incident reminds us that the choices made when adapting something are just as important as the original writing when it comes to how it’s received and who is held responsible.
