Ilaiyaraaja Moves Madras High Court Over Unauthorised Use Of His Songs In Dude
Legendary composer Ilaiyaraaja has approached the Madras High Court over the unauthorised use of his songs in Dude, alleging music companies are cheating him and distorting his compositions.
Pradeep Ranganathan and Mamitha Baiju’s film Dude has landed in legal trouble as legendary composer Ilaiyaraaja has approached the Madras High Court over the unauthorised use of his music. According to Live Law, Ilaiyaraaja claimed that he is being “cheated” by music companies that continue to use and manipulate his compositions without permission.
Ilaiyaraaja files complaint
The case was heard on Wednesday, October 22, before Justice N Senthilkumar. The musician’s plea was filed against Sony Music, which had previously been directed by the court to provide daily accounts of revenue generated from streaming Ilaiyaraaja’s songs. In Dude, a segment from the song Karutha Machan from the 1991 film Pudhu Nellu Pudhu Naathu was used without authorisation.
Senior Advocate S Prabakaran, representing Ilaiyaraaja, noted that the Supreme Court had not issued any interim orders and that there was no legal barrier to hearing the petition. However, the judge decided to wait for the Supreme Court’s ruling to maintain judicial discipline.
Dispute over revenue details
Reports indicate that Prabakaran objected to the fact that Sony Music had not submitted a written statement or the requested revenue details. Narayan, representing the company, claimed that accounts were being submitted in a “sealed cover to maintain confidentiality.”
Prabakaran countered, highlighting that even the Supreme Court has criticised submitting documents in sealed envelopes. As a result, the judge refused to accept the sealed cover at this stage and will await the Supreme Court’s decision.
Prabakaran further emphasised the challenge faced by Ilaiyaraaja, “I may be a famous music composer. But I'm being cheated by these music companies. They are continuing to use my songs without any authorisation. They're distorting it, adding beats to it.”
The court observed that Ilaiyaraaja retains the right to file separate petitions if his compositions are used without permission in any other films.
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