Specifically, the Bombay High Court has issued an order preventing Santosh Kumar from saying again that Aditya Dhar stole the script for the popular film Dhurandhar. Justice Arif Doctor gave this limited protection to Dhar after Dhar himself filed a lawsuit claiming Kumar’s statements are damaging to his reputation; the court will hear more on the issue on April 16.
Court order and interim relief
The court said Dhar has a good initial case for protecting his reputation. The order stops Kumar from repeating the exact words and opinions mentioned in the lawsuit, and from making anything similar, until the next court date.
The court took note that Kumar had been officially informed about the hearing, but no one showed up to represent him. This temporary order is limited in scope, meant to stop the allegedly harmful statements from being repeated while the case moves forward.
Timeline and background of the dispute
The problem started after “Dhurandhar: The Revenge” (what most people call “Dhurandhar 2”) came out. Santosh Kumar said publicly that the filmmakers had copied a script he’d registered called “D Saheb”, a script he wrote and registered with the Screenwriters Association of India in t2023.
Aditya Dhar responded with a letter from his lawyers, saying the accusations of plagiarism were false and telling Kumar to stop making them. Kumar didn’t reply to the letter, so Dhar, through his lawyers, filed a defamation suit asking the court for an injunction (an order to stop something) and money as compensation.
Legal arguments presented in court
Dhar’s lawyer told the court that Kumar’s repeated claims were being spread around and seriously harming Dhar’s reputation. The lawyer asked for a temporary order to stop the statements from being shared even more widely, while the basic disagreement is settled.
The court did say Dhar has a good enough initial case to get limited, temporary help. The order doesn’t decide if Kumar’s claim of plagiarism is true or not, it only stops Kumar from publicly repeating the disputed statements until the court can hear more.
Santosh Kumar’s position and public allegations
Kumar continues to say that there are important similarities between his registered script and the movie that was released. After the film came out, he had a press conference to talk about his worries and said he would take legal action about the alleged copying.
Kumar says he formally registering his script is the basis for his accusations. He said he planned to start legal proceedings, but the court record shows he didn’t respond to Dhar’s first legal letter; this led Dhar to ask the court to get involved.
Implications for reputation management and copyright claims
This temporary order shows how courts try to find a balance between people’s right to express themselves and protecting someone’s reputation. For people in the public eye and those in creative jobs, repeatedly being accused of plagiarism can hurt their chances of making money and their overall position in the community, and so they will quickly go to court.
This lawsuit about defamation is separate from any formal case about copyright or infringement. If Kumar does want to claim the script was copied, that would be a different legal process, and would usually involve showing a lot of evidence of how the two scripts are substantially the same and that Dhar had access to Kumar’s script, rather than just focusing on Kumar’s public statements.
What to expect next in the case
The court has scheduled a further hearing for April t16th. At that point, both sides will be able to present more detailed proof and arguments about both the defamation claim and any claims Kumar has about who actually wrote the work.
Until then, the temporary order prevents Kumar from repeating the specific complaints in the lawsuit and anything like them in public. The upcoming hearings will decide if the injunction will remain in place, and if the court will award damages or any other kind of resolution.
Right now, this legal battle emphasizes how creative ownership and someone’s good name connect within the movie industry. While "Dhurandhar 2” continues to do well in cinemas, the court case will happen with a lot of public interest and financial stake.
