'Cocktail 2' 'Mashooqa': Shahid Kapoor and Kriti Sanon's song accused of copying 1993 Italian track; fans say, 'Pritam can't stop copying'

The makers of ‘Cocktail 2’ have dropped yet another track from the film, and this one is a romantic and peppy number. Titled ‘Mashooqa’, the song puts the sizzling chemistry between Shahid Kapoor and Kriti Sanon front and centre, and has already been making waves online. While fans have been loving the visuals and the pairing, the song has also landed in a bit of a controversy, with a section of internet users claiming that its tune has been lifted from a 1993 Italian song called ‘Se So Arrubate A Nonna’.A Reddit user sparked a debate after sharing side-by-side clips of Mashooqa and the 1993 Italian track, highlighting what they believed were glaring similarities between the two tunes. The post quickly snowballed, with several users piling on and claiming the music sounded nearly identical. One user commented, "It's still a dull song even after Pritam copied it." Another simply wrote, "Fork found in kitchen." One comment read, "Bollywood copying again?" while another added, "It sounds same." One user also took a dig with a joke, writing, "Pritam can't stop copying lol."A section of users stepped up to defend composer Pritam, arguing that the similarity could be a case of sampling rather than outright copying. One Reddit user laid it out clearly, explaining, "This is called sampling, not stealing/copying. It's when you take the main beat of a song and layer other instruments over it with changed lyrics. It's a very popular concept in the music industry. Pitbull, Taylor Swift, Kanye and many more artists also sample songs."For those unfamiliar, ‘Se So Arrubate A Nonna’ is a comedic track in the Neapolitan dialect by Italian duo Bibi & Coco, released back in 1993 as part of their album ‘Le Origini Vol. 2’. The title loosely translates to "The Kidnapped Grandma" in Neapolitan. While the song never quite broke into the global mainstream, it has quietly built a loyal cult following over the decades.For Pritam, plagiarism allegations are an old battle. The composer has repeatedly found himself under fire over the years, with music lovers pointing out echoes of international tracks in his compositions. One of the most talked-about cases was in 2017, when ‘Bulleya’ from ‘Ae Dil Hai Mushkil’ was held up against a ‘Papa Roach’ track, with many claiming the two sounded strikingly similar. Pritam had addressed such criticism head-on in a 2016 interview, candidly admitting to past "mistakes" and saying that the experience had made him far more cautious about his work.‘Mashooqa’ is composed by Pritam and the lyrics are written by Amitabh Bhattacharya. Raghav Chaitanya and Mahmood Ruaa Kayy have lent their voices to the song, with Mahmood also writing and singing the Italian parts. The song shows Kriti and Shahid's characters going on a trip together and slowly falling in love.‘Cocktail 2’, helmed by Homi Adajania, features Rashmika Mandanna alongside Shahid and Kriti in a key role. The film is a spiritual sequel to the much-loved 2012 romantic hit ‘Cocktail’, which had brought together Saif Ali Khan, Deepika Padukone and Diana Penty. The film is slated to make its way to theatres on June 19.