Overview
- On November 28, the Madras High Court granted an interim injunction restraining Mythri Movie Makers from using Ilaiyaraaja’s compositions in the film Dude.
- The court ordered the immediate removal of two tracks—“Nooru Varsham” and “Karutha Machan”—and set the next hearing for January 7 with a direction that the producers file their response.
- Ilaiyaraaja alleges the songs were altered and reused without his permission, harming his moral rights, and he seeks a permanent injunction, removal of infringing content, and disclosure of profits.
- The producers contend the works were created before the 2012 amendment, that producers were first owners, and that rights were lawfully licensed via prior assignments to Sony Music.
- The case underscores unresolved questions about how a composer’s authorship of musical works interacts with ownership of sound recordings and whether the 2012 amendment applies to pre‑2012 agreements.