HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court on Friday rejected the plea to quash proceedings in a copyright infringement case against renowned Indian Film Director and Scriptwriter, Kortala Siva, related to the movie ‘Srimanthudu.’ The complaint was filed by poet and novelist RD Wilson, also known as Sarath Chandra, who alleged that the film copied the concept and storyline of his novel ‘Chachhentha Prema.’
Justice K Surender highlighted that a prima facie examination of the complaint revealed not only a similarity in the concept but also in the storyline of the novel. The judge emphasized that making minor alterations to the main story did not absolve the accused of copyright infringement. Notably, the court cited the opinions of eight prominent writers who compared the movie and the novel, concurring that the film was a copy.
In his complaint, Sarath Chandra asserted that Kortala along with producer Yerneni Naveen and Mahesh Babu Entertainment Private Limited, intended to remake ‘Srimanthudu’ in Hindi for a Bollywood release.
The complainant filed a complaint before the Magistrate under Section 63 of the Copyright Act, along with IPC sections 420, 468, and 471.