Plagiarizing content is a common phenomenon in the world of entertainment. From Bollywood ripping off the songs of ace musicians like Ali Zafar and the late Junaid Jamshed to Pakistani artists being accused of the same on multiple occasions, blatant infringement continues to be a controversial subject. But not often do we see high-profile and well-reputed companies – especially those in the corporate sector – copying an artist’s work without giving him/her due credit. Singer-producer Farhad Humayun begs to differ. The Overload front man recently sent a legal notice to Coca-Cola for violating intellectual property rights in a recent TV advertisement.
A furious Humayun opted for the legal route after a Coca-Cola TVC in the name of style of “Coke and Music” allegedly used his version of Neray Aah’s distinct vocalization, guitar rhythm, tempo, music accents, vocal melody and delivery to broadcast its TVC on general television and YouTube/Instagram/Twitter as a teaser for the newest Coke Studio season, reported Daily Times. The multinational beverage company has not responded to the accusations yet.
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Neray Aah became an increasingly famous song when it first released and also grabbed eyeballs in Bollywood. In 2015, a Bollywood filmmaker asked Humayun if they could use Neray Aah in the film Main Hoon Rajinikanth, which the band refused as the director apparently wanted to use the song for free claiming the band would receive a lot of publicity. Neray Aah was also requested for another Indian cinema project starring Sanjay Dutt. However, the producers wanted to an Indian artist to sing it and thus, Overload declined the offer. Humayun founded his band back in 2003. A popular and renowned musician, he kicked off his career as an underground musician and formed two bands Co-Ven and Mindriot in which he played drums. He has also received multiple awards in his longstanding career, for both his audio and video work.