Churails Creator Asim Abbasi Clears The Air On Artwork Plagiarism

Last month, web series Churails came under heavy criticism from certain quarters for an alleged copyright infringement case when it was revealed that one of their artwork was strikingly similar to a French artist's artwork. 

Malika Favre, a French artist, designed this illustration in question for a feature in the New York Times and it is called 'Park Avenue'. Churails blatantly ripped off the illustration and Pakistanis were shocked by such a high-budgeted and high-profile web series making this error in judgment. 

Asim Abbasi, who created Churails, has now chosen to clear the air regarding this entire issue in a series of tweets on Twitter.

Must Read: Churails: Web Series Is Being Accused Of Plagiarizing Artwork Of A French Artist

Churails has taken Pakistan by storm and breathed fresh air into the web series content in the country. It is the sort of quality content the country was waiting for and Asim Abbasi has delivered it to perfection. The web series has gained critical acclaim and stars Sarwat Gillani, Yasra Rizvi, Meharbano, and Nimra Bucha in lead roles. 

The series aired on India's Zindagi Original (Zee5) and garnered a lot of praise in the neighboring country as well. It revolves around Karachi's secret detectives whose mission it is to expose the city's unfaithful, elite husbands. 

While so many things in Churails are worth praising, one particular issue regarding copyright infringement was raised by an observant social media user who alleged that Churails has blatantly plagiarized the work of a French artist.

Half a minute into the web series #churails and I spot some blatant plagiarism in the opening credits. @malikafavre’s powerful illustration has been quite conveniently ripped off. @nytopinion @nytimes @NewYorker pic.twitter.com/SNtF22eCGd

— Amna Tariq (@amna_tq) August 20, 2020

 People were left gutted at Studio Rokhan, which was tasked with the credit sequence of the web series and said that they expected better of the studio. Even Malika Favre replied to the post and expressed her shock and disappointment at the alleged copyright infringement. 

However, Asim Abbasi has now cleared the air surrounding this issue. The Cake director took to Twitter and said:

1. A few weeks ago the issue regarding the plagiarism / usage of an illustration created by French artist Malika Favre in Churails was brought to our attention. We immediately reached out to Malika to take necessary measures to rectify the situation. (Cont’d)

— Asim Abbasi (@IllicitusProduc) September 18, 2020

 Asim further pointed out that Studio Rokhan did not make any mistake and it was in fact an oversight by the production house. He said:

"I would also at this point like to clear the name of our animation creator, Studio Rokhan @rokhan_official of any wrongdoing. Due to an oversight by the production house, the animation studio was provided the said artwork and given the authorization to use it."

He concluded by saying:

"My silence on this matter was due to the production house needing time to complete the corrective process, which it now has. I strongly believe that the rights of all artists must be protected and upheld at all times and would like to personally apologize for this oversight."

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