Author fails to appear in court in case against Bhandarkar

Actress-turned-author Seema Seth on Monday failed to appear before a Delhi court to give it the script of movie Fashion to support her allegation that Bollywood filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar and two others had stolen the "idea and plot" for their movie from her book.

Seth had been given three months by additional chief metropolitan magistrate Lokesh Kumar Sharma to submit the movie's script to support her allegation against the three.

Seth was to appear before the court as per its earlier direction to her to produce "cogent and clear evidence to show that accused persons have infringed her copyright by producing film Fashion." She, however, did not turn up before the court.

The court had given her the direction, while refusing earlier to order registration of an FIR against Bhandarkar, producer Ronnie Screwala and writer Ajay Mongia on her complaint. The court has now fixed January 28, 2013 to hear the case.

Seth, in her plea, had contended Bhandarkar indulged in "clear-cut violation of the Copyright Act." She has also made Ronnie Screwala of UTV Motion Pictures a party in the case and had sought Rs2.5 crore as compensation from them.

Seth had sought lodging of an FIR against Bhandarkar and others under "appropriate" sections of the IPC and for violation of the Copyright Act.

In her complaint, she had said the accused have violated her copyright on book by releasing the film in October 2008.

Refusing to order registration of an FIR against them, the court had said that there can be no copyright in an idea, subject matter, themes, plots or historical or legendary facts and violation of the copyright in such cases is confined to the forum, manner and arrangement or expression of the idea by the author of the copyrighted work.