The Delhi High Court has ordered actor and Paramvah Studios owner Rakshit Shetty to pay a substantial fine of ₹20 lakh for copyright infringement. The penalty was imposed after Shetty was found to have used songs owned by MRT Music in his recent film Bachelor Party without obtaining the necessary permissions.
The legal dispute arose when Naveen Kumar, a partner at MRT Music, filed a case against Rakshit Shetty and Paramvah Studios, accusing them of unauthorized use of music from the films Nyaya Ellide and Gaalimaathu in Bachelor Party. Kumar claimed that the songs were used without proper authorization, leading to a violation of copyright law.
In response to the allegations, Rakshit Shetty and Paramvah Studios initially defended their actions, claiming on social media that MRT Music had demanded an unreasonable amount for the rights to use a few seconds of music. On July 15, 2024, the production house posted an open letter on Instagram addressing the issue.
Despite these defenses, the Delhi High Court ruled against Shetty, citing his failure to appear before the court as a significant factor in the decision. The court also instructed Shetty to remove the social media post that had addressed the issue. During the latest hearing on August 12, the court finalized its decision, ordering Shetty and his production house to pay ₹20 lakh to MRT Music as compensation for the unauthorized use of the tracks.
Rakshit Shetty, a prominent figure in the Sandalwood film industry, is currently gearing up for the release of his next film, Richard Anthony, where he takes on the dual role of director and lead actor. Meanwhile, Bachelor Party, which was released in theaters in January and on Amazon Prime in March, remains at the center of this legal controversy.
This case follows a similar issue faced by the 2022 national award-winning film Kantara, which also encountered legal challenges for the alleged unauthorized use of the song Varaha Roopam, originally composed by the Kerala-based band Thaikkudam Bridge.
