Delhi HC clears AR Rahman in 'Ponniyin Selvan' copyright case
What's the story
The Delhi High Court has overturned a single-judge ruling that had found music composer AR Rahman's Veera Raja Veera from Ponniyin Selvan 2 to be similar to Shiva Stuti, rendered by the junior Dagar brothers, Ustad Nasir Zahiruddin Dagar and Ustad Nasir Faiyazuddin Dagar. The court said, "We have held that the single judge has erred on principle & finding on the basis of the material that shows that the junior Dagar brothers had rendered the composition."
Infringement suit
One who renders composition can't be assumed to be composer
Judges C Hari Shankar and Om Prakash Shukla observed on Wednesday that "the person who renders the composition" can't be assumed to be the composer. The single-judge bench had earlier ruled that Veera Raja Veera is not merely inspired by but is identical to Shiva Stuti in terms of notes, emotion, and ear impact. This led to the acceptance of the infringement suit filed by Ustad Faiyaz Wasifuddin Dagar, kin of the Dagar brothers and a classical singer himself.
Damages awarded
Bench ordered amendment of credits in song
The single-judge bench in April had also ordered Rahman and the filmmakers to amend the song credits to read: "Composition based on Shiva Stuti by Late Ustad Nasir Faiyazuddin Dagar and Late Ustad Nasir Zahiruddin Dagar." Earlier, the credits only mentioned the Dagarvani tradition. Justice Prathiba M Singh directed Rahman and Madras Talkies to pay ₹2L as damages as well.
Legal challenge
Petition claimed no evidence suggests Dagar brothers authored the song
Challenging the single-judge ruling, Rahman had claimed that the directions were passed without identifying specific protectable elements in the suit composition. His petition also said that Justice Singh had wrongly held that Veera Raja Veera was authored by the junior Dagar brothers, despite no evidence for it. The court's recent verdict has granted relief to Rahman.