Overview

• Directors Radhika Rao and Vinay Sapru announced they were permanently retiring the 2002 Kaanta Laga remix to honor the late Shefali Jariwala as the one and only “Kaanta Laga girl.”
• Singer Sona Mohapatra challenged their decision as a publicity tactic, labeling the remix video “smutty” and questioning the sidelining of RD Burman, Lata Mangeshkar and Majrooh Sultanpuri.
• Mohapatra’s reference to Shefali as “the 42-year-old lady” drew widespread backlash on Reddit, where users condemned her remarks as insensitive to the late actress’s memory.
• In her follow-up posts, Mohapatra defended her stance, arguing that true ownership of Kaanta Laga belongs to its original creators rather than the directors of the remix video.
• Radhika Rao and Vinay Sapru have remained publicly silent since the exchange, and the controversy continues to fuel discussions on artistic credit, posthumous tributes and remix culture in Bollywood.