Mohit Suri's Saiyaara released July 18 but it did not take long for fans to point out similarities between the new release and a 2004 Korean tearjerker called A Moment to Remember.
The film drew huge attention with a ₹20–21 crore opening day. But online audiences quickly noted overlaps with the Korean film which also centers on a couple challenged by early-onset Alzheimer’s.
Viewers on Reddit and Xpointed out near-identical plot beats including the Alzheimer’s arc, memory confusion, fleeing heroine and recreating past moments together.
One Redditor says:
“Major plot points are literally the same, like Alzheimer’s, confusion with ex, girl running away. Also, the ending where he recreates the past moment is the same…”
“So Saiyaara is based on A Moment to Remember? Mohit Suri and his love for retelling South Korean movies…” added another
Despite the comparisons, Mohit Suri, along with writer Sankalp Sadanah and Yash Raj Films, have stated Saiyaara is an original work, possibly inspired by K-drama themes—but not a remake.
No legal or official remake rights have been secured, and no formal acknowledgments have been issued.
Fact-check coverage from another media source stresses that while Alzheimer’s serves as the emotional pivot, Saiyaara diverges through a focus on music, urban lifestyle, and distinct cultural storytelling.
This isn't the first instance of Suri infusing Bollywood with K-drama elements. Significant past examples include Murder 2 being loosely inspired by I Saw the Devil.
On X, users mockingly labeled this pattern, tweeting “Mohit Suri accused of copying Korean Films (again)”.
Critics argue that thematic similarity is not the same as plagiarism, especially in a genre rooted in emotional tragedy and dementia.
But more skeptical voices call it a “blatant copy,” insisting the resemblance goes well beyond a shared trope. As of now, no statement from Mohit Suri or YRF confirms Saiyaara as an official adaptation of the Korean film.
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