The Bombay High Court has passed an interim order restraining filmmaker Santosh Kumar RS from repeating comments concerning the script of Hindi film Dhurandhar, which were flagged as defamatory by the film's writer-director Aditya Dhar [Aditya Dhar v. Santosh Kumar RS & Ors].
Justice Arif S Doctor passed the order on a defamation suit filed by Dhar against Kumar. The Court noted that while Kumar had been served notice of the case, none appeared for him.
The Court proceeded to grant Dhar limited interim relief, observing that he had made out a prima facie case for the grant such relief.
"Until the next date, the defendant (Kumar) shall be restrained from repeating words set out in the suit, and all other words of a similar nature. Issue notice," the Court ordered.
It clarified that the order is specifically against Kumar and will operate till April 16, when the matter will be next listed for further hearing.
Dhar's defamation case concerns comments made by Kumar at a press conference held days after the release of the film Dhurandhar: The Revenge, the second in the series.
Kumar is alleged to have accused Dhar and the makers of Dhurandhar of copying his registered script titled D Saheb.
Following the press conference, Dhar sent a legal notice to Kumar, denying any plagiarism and cautioning Kumar against making any such further comment. However, Kumar did not respond to the legal notice, prompting Dhar to approach the Bombay High Court for relief.
Dhar’s plea seeks an injunction and damages for statements made by Kumar which he claims are baseless and defamatory.
Senior Advocate Birendra Saraf appeared for Dhar before the Court today and argued that Kumar's comments were deeply prejudicial and defamatory.
"All I seek is, if he has a grievance about infringement, he himself said I am going to initiate legal proceedings. He can initiate legal proceedings and I will respond to the same appropriately. But in the meanwhile, he can't use such language," Saraf said.
The Court granted Dhar interim relief after noting that the allegedly defamatory comments had been widely shared.
"In my view, the plaintiff has made out a case for the grant of limited ad-interim relief," the Court concluded.
Saraf was briefed by team from DSK Legal, including partners Parag Khandhar and Chandrima Mitra, and associates Siddhi Somani, Zara Dhanboora and Diva Chanchani.