The Bombay High Court has declined to grant interim relief to Trimurti Films in a high-profile copyright dispute concerning the iconic song 'Saat Samundar Paar'. The production house had sought to block the use of an adaptation of the song in the upcoming Dharma Productions movie, 'Tu Meri Main Tera Main Tera Tu Meri'.
Court's Key Findings and Rationale
Justice Sharmila U Deshmukh, presiding over the case, delivered the order on Tuesday. The court held that Trimurti Films Pvt Limited failed to establish a prima facie case that a 1990 agreement with music label Saregama India Ltd granted only a limited assignment of rights. The agreement, dated November 14, 1990, assigned certain rights to Saregama for the sound recordings for making records and music cassettes.
The court observed that the plaintiff could not convincingly argue that this assignment restricted Saregama from exploiting the underlying musical score independently. Justice Deshmukh noted, "Prima facie the plaintiffs have failed to make a case that the assignment agreement granted limited assignment in favour of defendant 3 for exploiting the sound recording for making of records and only for that purpose, the underlying musical score could be exploited."
Delay and Balance of Convenience Tilt the Scales
A significant factor in the court's decision was the concept of delay and balance of convenience. The court pointed out that Saregama had licensed the musical score for use in other projects in the past, including the 2014 film 'KICK' and the 2025 web series 'Hai Junoon'.
Furthermore, the teaser for the Dharma film featuring the background score was released in December 2024. The court found it difficult to accept that Trimurti Films, being part of the same industry, was unaware of the proposed remake. The judgment stated, "It is no answer to say that the teaser went unnoticed."
The court emphasized that film production involves substantial investment and there was no material to show the song could be removed without harming the script. The balance of convenience was found to tilt in favour of Dharma Productions and Saregama, as granting an injunction would cause them "grave prejudice."
Arguments Presented by Both Sides
Senior advocate Ravi Kadam, representing Trimurti Films, argued that the 1990 agreement assigned copyright only for making records and video cassettes. He contended that the underlying musical work could only be exploited for the beneficial enjoyment of that specific right and not independently, a point he said was supported by the lack of separate consideration for the musical score.
On the opposing side, advocates for Dharma Productions, led by Dr Birendra Saraf, highlighted Saregama's past licensing of the song as evidence of broader rights. Saregama's counsel, senior advocate Virendra Tulzapurkar, strongly argued the plea suffered from "inordinate delay and laches," noting the agreement was 35 years old and the rights had been exploited previously in films like 'Jabariya Jodi' (2019) and a Cadbury advertisement (2015).
This ruling is a crucial development in Bollywood's intellectual property landscape, setting a precedent on the interpretation of historical music assignment contracts and the weight given to delay in seeking injunctive relief.
