MADURAI: The producers of the Rajanikanth film Lingaa have been ordered by a local court to submit the script in court so that it can be judged whether the plot was stolen from another film.
Film producer K R Ravi Rathinam of Madurai has dragged the makers of Lingaa, including its lead star Rajinikanth, to court, alleging that they stole the script of his movie Mullaivanam 999. He filed a suit in the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court, which ordered the additional district munsif’s court of Madurai to reach a verdict on the matter by April 30.
Accordingly, the lower court ordered the counsels from both sides to appear before it along with their clients, including Rajinikanth, on Tuesday. When the case came up before judge Viswanathan, Ravi Rathinam argued that though he has submitted the original script of his movie, the respondents did not submit theirs. The makers ofLingaa sought more time and the judge ordered them to comply on Wednesday.
When Ravi Ratnam first filed his writ petition in December 2014, the Madurai bench had ordered Lingaa producer T N Venkatesh alias 'Rockline' Venkatesh to deposit ademand draft for Rs.5 crore and a bank guarantee for Rs.5 crore before releasing the movie.
Though the producer complied with the order as he had to release the movie immediately, he appealed against the fiat in the Supreme Court. The apex court passed an order on March 20, 2015, slashing the bank guarantee down to Rs 1 crore.
The apex court also ordered the additional district munsif court of Madurai to dispose of the suit within six months. When the lower court failed to meet the deadline, theMadurai bench set a deadline April 30.