Humans of Bombay (HOB) founder Karishma Mehta has found herself in boiling waters after her storytelling platform filed a case against People of India (POI) for alleged copyright infringement of its content.
Meanwhile, Humans of New York's (HONY) Brandon Stanton expressed displeasure regarding HOB filing a lawsuit against POI; he called out the founder, Karishma Mehta.
New Statement From Humans Of New York (HONY)
In a recent post on Instagram, the founder of HONY declared that he has not received a penny for a single story told about humans in New York for the last thirteen years, despite being offered millions. “All my income comes from books of my work, speeches I have given, and Patreon. I cannot provide an informed opinion on the intricacies of copyright law, but I do have an opinion on what it means to be an artist,” he said.
Elaborating further, Stanton wrote, “Beautiful art can make money; there is nothing wrong with that. But when art begins with a profit motive, it ceases to be art. And it becomes a product.”
“I welcome anyone who is using the “humans of” concept to express something true and beautiful about their community. I do not identify with anyone who is using it for the sake of creating a certain lifestyle for themselves,” wrote the visionary behind “Humans of New York.”
In the caption, he said that he was asked for a comment by the Washington Post regarding a certain case involving his work, but it thankfully doesn’t involve him. However, he said that he thought it would be worthwhile to share the statement here. He also mentioned “Humans of Amsterdam” as an example of a true artist who has done beautiful things with the “Humans of” concept and encouraged everyone to follow the portal.
Karishma Mehta's Old Video HOB
In light of these allegations, an old video of Humans of Bombay founder Karishma Mehta talking about her platform has gone viral on social media. The founder is seen revealing how the idea of the "Humans of Bombay" came about.
She is seen saying that “the idea came out of the blue” and just clicked for her. “It was completely random, and out of the blue, I stumbled upon the idea of the Humans of Bombay, and I started it. And it clicked. That period was a high of its own to start something new.”
She also went on to explain her "struggles.” She shared how the organisation didn't make any money for the first three years, and she was completely dependent on pocket money from her parents.
For the unversed, Mehta is getting slammed by HONY founder Brandon Stanton for apparently drawing inspiration from HONY without encountering any legal challenges. Stanton also stated that he was willing to forgive the appropriation in the past and questioned why HOB was filing a lawsuit against other platforms.
Since being posted on September 24, the old video has gathered over 5 million views on X (formerly Twitter), and social media users have slammed Mehta for suing People of India. One user sarcastically said, “Randomly out of the blue, I think about making kids characters; one would be a mouse and the other a duck. Maybe call it Dickey and Monald."
Another joked that they think they too have heard similar reasoning from Anu Malik ji. A third user pointed out the quote, “When you tell a lie a hundred times, it doesn’t qualify as a lie anymore.” A fourth user called out Mehta, emphasising that the concept and name of HOB turned out to be an exact replica of HONY and sarcastically calling it a “delicious coincidence.”
Suggested Reading:Explained: Row Over Humans of Bombay Case, HONY Founder Reaction
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