Writer Vipul K Rawal has made a mark for himself with films like Rustom (2016), Batti Gul Meter Chalu (2018), Mission Raniganj (2023), Sikandar Ka Muqaddar (2024), etc. Recently, he has been in the news for co-writing the much-loved web series Taskaree: The Smuggler's Web, alongside Neeraj Pandey. However, his journey into film writing started on a shaky note. He revealed it in an interview with a YouTube channel named Bethak. Vipul K Rawal claimed that a script he had developed was later adapted without his consent into Iqbal (2005), directed by Nagesh Kukunoor and starring Shreyas Talpade and Naseeruddin Shah.
Vipul K Rawal began by saying, “When I was in the Navy, we used to play hockey during our free time. Our coach was very khadoos; he used to be in a foul mood all day. But on a rare instance, we saw him praising someone. He said, ‘Woh Railway ka drag flicker bahut solid hai’. I wondered, ‘This man abuses everyone all day; he doesn’t even spare his son and wife. Who is he praising?’. I found out that he was talking about Rajiv Mishra, who is said to be the ‘Tendulkar of Hockey’. At 17, he reached his peak but at 25, he faced injury and became an alcoholic.”
Vipul added, “I got the story idea from his life and wrote a story of a hockey player. Meanwhile, it was a time when Nagesh Kukunoor was an upcoming filmmaker. I was impressed by his film, Hyderabad Blues (1998). I pitched the idea and he liked it. We jammed on it for 5-6 months.”
Vipul continued, “Later, he told me that he was busy with Hyderabad Blues 2 (2006). 6 months later, I saw the promo of Iqbal on TV. I could make out that it was my story. He changed hockey into cricket and the character Mishra into a Muslim! In those days, I used to assist Manjul Sinha and he introduced me to Ashoke Pandit. I had the advantage as I had narrated the story of Iqbal to nearly 17 producers. Everybody had rejected it. They also confirmed that ‘Yeh toh Vipul ki kahaani hai’.”
Vipul K Rawal then stated, “Unki bahut badnaami hui thi. Newspapers like The Times of India and several news channels reported on this episode. News channels pitted Nagesh Kukunoor and me against each other in on-air debates. Those days, I used to work in Wipro’s call centre on the night shift. I used to be paid Rs. 20,00 months, which means that my annual salary was Rs. 2.40 lakhs. One day, during the break, I called my wife. She told me, ‘Someone had come and given you Rs. 3 lakhs’! Manjul Sinha told me, ‘Paise rakh le. You got your publicity’. By then, the prints of Iqbal had been dispatched. But I believe in the DVD of Iqbal, I have been credited. Most importantly, people in the industry knew that I had written it. That mattered kyunki kaam se hi kaam milta hai.”
More Pages: Iqbal Box Office Collection
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