Madras HC nixes Netflix plea to quash Tamil actor Dhanush’s suit against Nayanthara

The Madras High Court on 28 January, Tuesday, dismissed an application filed by OTT platform Netflix that sought the rejection of Tamil superstar Dhanush’s copyright infringement suit against actor Nayanthara.

The case pertains to the alleged unauthorised use of visuals from the Tamil movie Naanum Rowdy Dhaan in the Netflix docu-drama Nayanthara: Beyond the Fairytale.

Justice Abdul Quddhose also dismissed another application filed by Los Gatos Production Services India LLP, an entity managing Netflix’s content investments in India, which sought to revoke the court’s earlier leave granted to Wunderbar Films, owned by Dhanush, to file the suit in the Madras High Court.

Los Gatos argued that the suit should not proceed in Chennai since the applicant company was based in Mumbai. However, the judge ruled in favour of senior counsel P.S. Raman, assisted by Gautam S. Raman, holding that the applications by Los Gatos lacked merit. The court scheduled a further hearing on 5 February regarding the interim relief sought by Wunderbar Films.

The interim relief pertains to the use of visuals from Naanum Rowdy Dhaan in the Netflix docu-drama. In the affidavit, Sreyas Srinivasan, director of Wunderbar Films, argued that neither Nayanthara nor Netflix had the right to use any footage, including behind-the-scenes (BTS) visuals from the 2015 film, without prior permission from Wunderbar Films, which had produced the movie.

Srinivasan explained that Nayanthara had signed an artist's agreement with Wunderbar Films on 27 August 2014, which transferred all rights related to her performance, likeness, name and voice in connection with the movie to the production company in perpetuity.

Wunderbar Films claimed that on discovering the unauthorised use of the BTS visuals in the docu-drama’s trailer, a notice was issued to Netflix on 9 November 2024.

In response, Netflix and Tarc Studios LLP, the producers of the docu-drama, stated on 11 November 2024 that the visuals were personal in nature and had not been shot by persons commissioned by Wunderbar Films.

The dispute came into the public eye just days before the docu-drama’s release on 18 November 2024.

On 16 November, Nayanthara had addressed an open letter to Dhanush via her social media platform, alleging that she had repeatedly requested for a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from Wunderbar Films for two years but had not received one.

In her letter, Nayanthara explained that the docu-drama included a few seconds of visuals and songs from Naanum Rowdy Dhaan because the film marked the beginning of her romantic relationship with her now-husband, director Vignesh Shivan. She accused Dhanush of harbouring a personal grudge against her and Shivan, as he had sent her a legal notice seeking Rs 10 crore in damages after the release of the trailer. Nayanthara claimed that only three seconds of BTS footage shot on personal devices were used, making the legal notice unjustifiable.