Call it a day for films being `inspired` by other films. The watchdog to keep a check on plagiarism is here and it`s going to stay in all probability in the coming years.

Claiming that Partner is a direct lift of the Hollywood blockbuster Hitch, Sony Pictures is going to sue K Sera Sera & Eros, the co-producers for David Dhawan`s film to the court.

Even producer Sohail Khan had admitted earlier that Partner had been inspired by Hitch.

It is not new in Bollywood to copy from the Hollywood films. In the past there have been instances where not only the plots of Hollywood movies were lifted but the producers did it in such a blatant manner that even a novice could find frame by frame similarity with their Hollywood counterparts when compared.

However, things might change now. According to a leading newspaper, the producers of Hitch, i.e. Sony Pictures Entertainment and Overbrook Entertainment (Will Smith`s production house) are likely to sue the producers of Partner for a $30-million suit.

Not only in films but also in music, plagiarism had its fair share from time immemorial. However, some lifts like Roy Orbison`s Pretty Woman in Kal Ho Na Ho and a few others have gone it the legal way.

It happened the other way round as well when Bappi Lahiri filed a lawsuit in a federal court for allegedly lifting heavily from a 20-year-old Hindi song in the popular chartbuster album Addictive by Truth Hurts.

It now remains to be seen whether Sony Pictures finally goes in for a suit against the film or not. If it does then not only the producers of Partner but also the rest do need to ponder over the matter, and of course seriously.