Earlier this week, Pakistani musician Shuja Haider accused composer Rashid Khan of plagiarizing his latest single, Piya Re Piya, from his 2017 song Baaghi. Haider added that the melody and an entire verse were copied from his song without giving him credit. Denying her claims, Khan said, “My song’s music and lyrics are drastically different. Yasser Desai, the vocalist of Piya Re Piya, also matched the ratings of the two songs. Just like him, my friend Imran Abbas (actor-singer-producer) from Pakistan and my guru also think dono gaanon mein zameen aasmaan ka farq hai.

He adds: “I didn’t even know who he (Haider) was. I have never heard his song before. So how am I going to plagiarize it? Even if four notations of my composition match his, I will quit my job.

Speaking of how he feels, Haider shot him to “gain publicity,” says Khan: “I’ve composed music for 22 movies in my career. I would like to believe that I have some credibility. Har gaana saat suron se hi banta hai, aur usmein se koi ek sur mil gaya toh iska matlab yeh nahin hai ki gaana unka ho gaya.

Music composer Shaadi Mein Zaroor Aana (2017) shares that he will take “legal action for defamation if Haider does not apologize” to him: “He is trying to tarnish my image. No one has ever accused me of plagiarism and these claims are an insult to my years of training and experience.

While copyright laws are important, he says they shouldn’t be abused for your own benefit. “These laws aim to protect the rights of musicians. If there had been copyright issues, YouTube would have banned my song,” concludes Khan.