Made in Heaven 2: Alankrita Shrivastava hits back at Yashica Dutt, reveals, the episode was shot before their meeting

In Pic: Yashica Dutt and Anurag Kashyap (Pic/Instagram)

‘Made in Heaven 2', starring Sobhita Dhulipala, has been making headlines since its release. First, it got slammed by designer Tarun Tahiliani for misusing his outfits. Later, Dalit author Yashica Dutt accused them of not giving her credit. Dutt's claim centred around the fifth episode of ‘Made in Heaven 2', titled ‘The Heart Skipped a Beat', starring Radhika Apte. Yashica alleged that the episode's storyline was a mirror of her own life experiences.

Recently, Anurag Kashyap, in a conversation with Bollywood Hungama, was prompted to share his thoughts on the simmering controversy. Labelling Yashica's actions as those of an 'opportunist', Kashyap asserted, "For me, it looks like an opportunist. Nothing more than that."

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Just after Kashyap's comment, Yashica released another statement in a long post. Taking to her Instagram, she wrote, "Update: In response to my gentle demand for acknowledgement on an episode that blatantly used my likeness, the makers of MIH put out a hostile statement calling it ‘misleading'. Was it also misleading when Alankrita Shrivastava, who is a writer and director of the show and co-signed that condescending statement, requested a meeting with me in New York on July 15, 2022, that lasted five hours? Where she asked me everything about my life but refused to reveal anything about her intentions."

She further continued, "The distortion of this narrative is all about protecting the ‘progressive' image of indie Bollywood as they continue to steal from Dalit people's lives, silencing them when they ask for their rightful credit. Even the ‘vanguards' are complicit in this."

"I have immense respect for Neeraj Ghaywan's struggle to make his space within these savarna power structures. But I never met him or told him my story. I met Alankrita Shrivastava. Now the same savarna power structures are pitting us against each other while making Ghaywan be accountable in public for their blatant theft. I hope this moment is a lesson that our stories are not for taking without credit or permission. This theft of Dalit labor ends now. Jai Bhim!" she concluded.

As soon as Yashica dropped the post, Alankrita Shrivastava reacted to it and claimed that the episode was shot before her New York visit. In her tweet, the filmmaker-writer wrote, "The Pallavi Menke story was shot in October 2021. I went to New York in July 2022."

Made in Heaven, an anthology series created by Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti for Prime Video revolves around wedding planners played by Arjun Mathur and Sobhita Dhulipala.