Madras High Court rules in Dhanush’s favour against Netflix and Nayanthara | Details inside

New Delhi: The Madras High Court has rejected Netflix’s application to dismiss a civil suit filed by Dhanush’s Wunderbar Films against Nayanthara and her director-husband Vignesh Sivan. For those who do not know, the much-talked-about dispute centres around the alleged unauthorised use of visuals from the 2015 Tamil movie Naanum Rowdy Dhaan in the Netflix docu-drama Nayanthara: Beyond the Fairytale.

Justice Abdul Quddhose also denied Netflix’s plea to revoke the permission granted to Wunderbar Films for filing the suit in Chennai, even though the OTT giant’s entity Los Gatos Production Services is based in Mumbai. The court has locked February 5 as the date to hear Wunderbar’s request for interim relief.

What is the Dhanush vs Nayanthara controversy?

Dhaunsh’s Wunderbar Films accused Nayanthara and Netflix of using behind-the-scenes (BTS) visuals from Naanum Rowdy Dhaan without proper authorisation. According to the director of the production house, Sreyas Srinivasan, the artist agreement signed by the actress in 2014 gave the production house perpetual rights over all performances, appearances and BTS material related to the film.

The production house further claimed that BTS footage used in the documentary-drama’s trailer was uploaded to their YouTube channel in 2015. All this made it clear that the rights belonged exclusively to them. They reportedly issued a legal notice to Netflix in November 2024. Netflix responded, stating that Tarc Studios, the producers of the docu-drama claimed to possess necessary permissions.

Sreyas further valued the damages due to copyright infringement at Rs 1 crore and pointed out that Vignesh Sivan, who directed Naanum Rowdy Dhaan was engaged on a work-for-hire basis.

Nayanthara’s open letter to Dhanush

Days before the docu-drama’s release in November 2024, Nayanthara addressed the issue publicly in an open letter to Dhanush. She revealed that she had repeatedly sought a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) from Wunderbar Films for using songs, visuals and photos tied to her love story with Sivan, which began during the movie’s shoot.

She accused Dhanush of refusing the NOC out of personal animosity and expressed shock over receiving a Rs 10 crore legal notice after the docu-drama’s trailer featured three seconds of BTS visuals. The legal battle also added powerful drama to the Nayanthara: Beyond the Fairytale’s release, keeping Reddit and Kollywood buzzing.