Music composer Pritam has once again found himself at the centre of plagiarism allegations after the release of the song Mashooqa from Cocktail 2.

Soon after the track dropped, a section of internet users claimed it bears a strong resemblance to the 1993 Italian song Se So Arrubate A Nonna, originally by the duo Bibi and Coco. The discussion reportedly gained traction after a Reddit post highlighted the alleged similarity.

The original Italian track, Se So Arrubate A Nonna, is a Neapolitan song released as part of the album Le Origini Vol. 2. The title roughly translates to “The Kidnapped Grandma” in the Neapolitan dialect.

Pritam responds on Instagram

Responding to the controversy, Pritam addressed the allegations via his Instagram Story, pushing back against recurring claims of copying.

He wrote:
“Every single one of my song releases comes with a set of self-appointed music detectives, who have created a new genre called ‘imaginary similarities.’ Same people, same ‘inspired by’ thesis. Boss, at this point, you are my unpaid PR team. I just want to say, guys, NOT NICE.”

Divided reactions online

The debate quickly spread across social media platforms, where users remained split over whether the similarity qualifies as inspiration or copying.

Some Reddit users criticised the composer, with one comment stating:

“Again he copied, but again, he made it as good, if not better, than the original.”

Another user added claims about repeated reuse of musical ideas in his work.

However, several users defended the composer, arguing that such comparisons are often exaggerated. One comment read:

“These kinds of ‘similarities’ can be found for every new song. This is such a stretch.”

Another user noted, “I wouldn’t call that a copy, really.”

About ‘Cocktail 2’

The upcoming film Cocktail 2 is directed by Homi Adajania and serves as a spiritual sequel to the 2012 hit Cocktail, which starred Saif Ali Khan, Deepika Padukone, and Diana Penty.

The film is scheduled for theatrical release on June 19.

Mashooqa, composed by Pritam, features lyrics by Amitabh Bhattacharya. The track is sung by Raghav Chaitanya along with Mahmood Ruaa Kayy, who also contributed to the Italian portions of the song.