ILAIYARAAJA VS. SONY MUSIC: SUPREME COURT CONFIRMS BOMBAY HIGH COURT JURISDICTION

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Ilaiyaraaja Music N Management (IMMPL), the company representing the iconic composer Ilaiyaraaja, filed a lawsuit in the Madras High Court seeking urgent interim relief to prevent the use of his famous song “Sivarathiri” in the newly released Tamil film Mrs & Mr and restrain the producers from using his name or image in promotional materials. On 14 July 2025, Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy declined to grant any ex parte relief, noting that Vanitha Film Productions needed a fair chance to respond. The court gave them one week to submit a counter affidavit, emphasising that questions remained about whether the producers legitimately obtained rights to the song from Echo Recording or related entities.

In their reply, the producers led by Vanitha Vijayakumar claimed they had legitimately licensed the music from Echo Recording or Sony Music and had removed Ilaiyaraaja’s name from the film credits following his objections. They also argued that Sony Music now holds rights over thousands of his compositions acquired through assignments. Vanitha clarified that there is no personal dispute with the composer and the use of the song was authorized in law.

Meanwhile, Sony Music Entertainment India has an ongoing copyright suit in the Bombay High Court filed in 2022, seeking an injunction against IMMPL over the use of 536 musical works. IMMPL has argued that 310 of those works are already subject to litigation in Madras High Court since a 2014 suit against Echo Recording that went in Ilaiyaraaja’s favour in 2019, affirming his moral rights over his compositions.

The situation reached the Supreme Court, where on 28 July 2025 IMMPL sought to transfer Sony’s Bombay proceedings to Madras High Court. However, the bench led by Chief Justice Gavai and Justices Chandran and Anjaria declined the transfer, finding the petition premature and cautioning against parallel litigation that could lead to conflicting rulings. The Court noted that IMMPL’s base of operations is Chennai, but maintained that Sony’s suit can stay in Bombay High Court as filed.

As of now, the Madras proceedings continue on the creative rights sidelike song usage and personality rightswhile the Bombay suit proceeds on sound recording and assignment issues. The overall dispute underscores how different layers of rightscomposer’s moral rights versus recording company’s economic claimscan exist concurrently and fuel complex jurisdictional and legal battles.

What’s Next?

A further hearing in Madras High Court is scheduled for 18 August 2025, focusing on rights pertaining to song usage and promotional conduct. No final decisions have been delivered yet, but observers expect both the legal and industry implications to be significant.