Is Saiyaara A Copy Of This Korean Classic? Writer Reacts

Bollywood’s sensational romantic drama, Saiyaara, was released last month and entered the Rs 500 crore club, becoming the first-ever Hindi romance drama to have crossed the Rs 500 crore milestone at the global box office. The film has turned its lead actors, Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda, into overnight stars.

Ever since Saiyaara’s release, social media has been buzzing with speculations that the film’s story has been “lifted” from the acclaimed Korean classic, A Moment to Remember. However, the film’s story writer, Sankalp Sadanah, requested audiences to not jump to conclusions and watch both films and then form their opinions.

Dismissing the “copy” allegations, Sankalp Sadanah said, “Both Saiyaara and A Moment to Remember are out there. Watch both the movies, and you’ll be able to tell whether it’s inspired, a copy, or an original.” He went on to say that Saiyaara was born not from a structured screenplay, but from a moment of pure emotion during a casual meeting with the film’s director, Mohit Suri.

Sankalp revealed that the emotional seed of the film germinated from the single line narrated by Mohit Suri. “Saiyaara wasn’t driven by plot mechanics or formulas,” he added, while also putting an end to the speculations of Saiyaara being a sequel to Aashiqui.

Netizens who watched Saiyaara alleged that the main idea of the lead couple’s romantic relationship tested by memory loss was the main similarity between Saiyaara and A Moment To Remember. Incidentally, in both movies, a young couple goes through an emotional conflict, with the female lead suffering from a degenerative memory condition and the male lead taking cafe of her.