Rajinikanth's Coolie copied 'Disco' from his song, alleges Ilaiyaraaja; threatens 'repercussions' in legal notice

Music maestro Ilaiyaraaja has issued a legal copyright notice to Sun Pictures for unauthorised usage of his music in their latest film Coolie, starring Tamil megastar Rajnikanth. Ilaiyaraaja, in the notice, said that the makers of the film had used his musical work in the teaser without authorisation.

Asserting that he is the rightful owner of the music, Ilaiyaraaja said that the makers of the movie did not seek any formal permission from him. In the notice, Ilaiyaraaja claimed that the teaser of Coolie had a rendition of his song 'Vaa Vaa Pakkam Vaa' from the film Thanga Magan, also starring Rajinikanth.

This music, according to the petitioner, is remixed in the song 'Disco' for Coolie. The music maestro emphasised that such usage constitutes a clear violation of the Copyright Act (1957).

Furthermore, Ilaiyaraaja pointed out that the director of Coolie, Lokesh Kanagaraj, had previously utilised his compositions in the movie Vikram without obtaining consent. In the notice, Ilaiyaraaja demanded that either the producers of Coolie get proper authorisation for the song 'Vaa Vaa Pakkam Vaa' or remove it from the teaser of the movie.

The notice said that if the producers do not abide by the conditions stated in the notice, they will have to "face serious legal repercussions."

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DNA staff and is published from IANS

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