Relief for AR Rahman: Delhi High Court Quashes Interim Order in Copyright Dispute

The Delhi High Court has granted relief to music composer AR Rahman in a copyright dispute over the song Veera Raja Veera from the Tamil film Ponniyin Selvan 2 (PS2).

On Wednesday, a Division Bench of Justices C Hari Shankar and Om Prakash Shukla set aside an interim injunction passed earlier by a single-judge against Rahman. The Bench said, “We have allowed the appeal. We have authored concurrent opinions. We have set aside the impugned order by the single judge on principle.” The Court, however, clarified that it has not examined whether copyright infringement actually took place.

The case was filed by renowned classical singer and Padma Shri awardee, Faiyaz Wasifuddin Dagar. He alleged that Veera Raja Veera was copied from Shiva Stuti, a composition created by his father Nasir Faiyazuddin Dagar and uncle Zahiruddin Dagar. According to him, while the lyrics were different, the taal, rhythm and structure of Rahman’s song were identical to the original, which had been performed globally and released by PAN Records.

Rahman rejected the claims, arguing that Shiva Stuti is a traditional Dhrupad composition, part of the public domain. He also emphasised that Veera Raja Veera was an independent creation, made using Western musical techniques and layered with 227 elements, going beyond the boundaries of Hindustani classical music.

Earlier, on 25 April, the single-judge had ruled in favour of Dagar, ordering Rahman and the film’s producers to credit the Dagar brothers across online platforms. They were also directed to deposit ₹2 crore and pay costs of ₹2 lakh.

Rahman challenged the order, after which the Division Bench stayed the injunction on 6 May. The Bench also put the costs on hold but asked Rahman and the producers to deposit ₹2 crore as an interim measure, clarifying that this was not a comment on the merits of the case.