A shadow looms large over Shahid Kapoor and Triptii Dimri’s ‘O Romeo’, primed for a February 13 theatrical debut. Sanobar Sheikh, daughter of Hussain ‘Ustara’ Sheikh, has approached the courts with a fervent plea to halt the film’s rollout. Her core allegation: the movie grotesquely misrepresents her father, depicting him as a psychotic mobster in its promotional trailer, when in reality, he was a key ally to Mumbai police and intelligence agencies in dismantling criminal networks nationwide.
In a detailed court affidavit, Sanobar highlights the potential for ‘irreparable damage’ to her family’s honor. She points out that the central character, played by Shahid, bears uncanny resemblances to her father’s life, sourced loosely from Hussain Zaidi’s bestseller ‘Mafia Queens of Mumbai’. Directed by the acclaimed Vishal Bhardwaj, the film has prompted Sanobar to file both a police FIR and a judicial injunction.
Today’s court hearing could prove pivotal. Filmmakers counter that the narrative is purely fictional, with creative embellishments far outweighing any biographical fidelity. Zaidi echoed this in media interactions, stressing the story’s artistic reinvention rather than a straight biopic.
The dispute underscores broader tensions in Bollywood between storytelling inspired by true events and the rights of real individuals’ kin. Recent precedents, like the backlash against Manoj Bajpayee’s project, amplify the stakes. With Shahid’s star power and the film’s gritty underworld theme, ‘O Romeo’ promised to be a box-office contender. Now, its fate hangs by a judicial thread, prompting debates on artistic freedom versus personal dignity.