'These accusations against me are completely false' - IPL Anthem composer on plagiarism claims

On September 6, the official Twitter handle of the Indian Premier League (IPL) released the anthem for the upcoming edition of the cash-rich tournament titled as “Aayenge Hum Wapas”. The song was based on the theme of “The greater the setback…The stronger the comeback.” The 93-second video depicts the hardships the common man is going through due to the ongoing pandemic and how the commencement of the IPL 2020 will give them hope and happiness.

However, just after a few days of its release, the anthem was under major scrutiny as an Indian Rapper Krishna Kaul alleged that the anthem was plagiarised from his 2017 rap song which was titled “Dekho Kaun Aaya Wapas”. He claimed that the song was copied without his knowledge and no credits were given to him for using his creation.

Krishna had first made this revelation on his Twitter account. Calling out the authorities, the Rapper had tweeted, “Hey guys, @IPL has plagiarised my song “Dekh Kaun Aaya Waapas” and created “Aayenge Hum Wapas” as this years anthem without credit or consent. I request my fellow artists and friends on twitter to RT this tweet for awareness, they can not get away with this. @DisneyPlusHS.”

Hey guys, @IPL has plagiarised my song “Dekh Kaun Aaya Waapas” and created “Aayenge Hum Wapas” as this years anthem without credit or consent. I request my fellow artists and friends on twitter to RT this tweet for awareness, they can not get away with this. @DisneyPlusHS https://t.co/GDNFeyhXR5

— KR$NA (@realkrsna) September 7, 2020

The claims made by the song composer had soon gone viral on social media as the fans slammed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and IPL authorities for stealing someone’s hard work. The hashtag #IplAnthemCopied started trending on twitter with the Twitterati demanding justice for Krishna by asking the concerned authorities to give him “due credits”.

IPL anthem composer gives clarification on the accusations of plagiarism

As the #IplAnthemCopied movement started gaining momentum on Twitter, the composer of the IPL anthem ‘Aayenge Hum Wapas’, Pranav Ajayrao Malpe finally broke his silence stating that the anthem is the result of his own hard work and efforts and the same has been confirmed by Music Composers Association of India (MCAI). Pranav further clarified that the accusations hurled upon them are completely baseless and their only motive of creating it was giving people hope and inspiration amidst such difficult times.

Here is my response on the #AayengeHumWapas Anthem. pic.twitter.com/vUjHzqnDpr

— Dhruvv (Pranav) Malpe (@dhruvvit) September 8, 2020