The Madras High Court recently marked the end of a high-profile copyright dispute, closing the civil suits filed by legendary music composer Ilaiyaraaja against Mythri Movie Makers, the producers of the Tamil films Dude and Good Bad Ugly. The core of the conflict stemmed from the alleged unauthorised use, and in some cases, distortion, of several of Ilaiyaraaja’s classic songs in the new movies.
Specifically for Dude, the music maestro had alleged copyright infringement over the use of his songs “Nooru Varusham” and “Karutha Machan.” Ilaiyaraaja’s legal team argued that even though the producers claimed to have secured rights from music labels, the Copyright (Amendment) Act of 2012 secured the composer’s “inalienable right to royalty” and required his direct consent for the commercial exploitation or adaptation of his original musical works.
This stance led the court to initially grant an interim injunction restraining the producers from using the songs, particularly in Dude, and demanding their removal from the OTT platform.
The matter was ultimately resolved out of court and formalised through a joint memorandum of compromise filed before Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy. As per the settlement terms, Mythri Movie Makers agreed to pay a total of ₹50 lakh (fifty lakh rupees) to Ilaiyaraaja. The payment was deemed a “commercial settlement and gratitude” for the usage of five of his songs across both films (Dude and Grindhouse).
Crucially, the agreement allowed the producers to continue using the two songs in the movie Dude, which was already streaming online, upon receipt of the settlement amount. However, the production house agreed to desist from using three other songs that were initially featured in Good Bad Ugly.
This resolution underscores the composer’s persistent fight to establish and protect the rights of creators in the Indian film industry, setting a costly precedent that unauthorised usage, even if acquired from third-party labels, remains a violation of the original author’s rights and will be met with legal action.
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