Delhi HC Rules AR Rahman’s ‘Veera Raja Veera’ Identical to Dagar’s ‘Shiva Stuti’; Orders ₹2 Crore Compensation

Delhi HC Rules AR Rahman: On Friday, in a copyright infringement case concerning the song composition 'Veera Raja Veera' from the 2023 Tamil film Ponniyin Selvan 2 (PS2), the Delhi High Court temporarily restrained music composer AR Rahman and production company Madras Talkies.

In 2023, a Padma Shri recipient, Indian classical singer Faiyaz Wasifuddin Dagar, filed a suit alleging that a part of the composition of the song constituted copying of another song, Shiva Stuti, composed by his father, Nasir Faiyazuddin Dagar, and uncle, Zahiruddin Dagar.

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He prayed for a permanent injunction restraining the defendants, Rahman and Madras Talkies, from using the song, besides damages and moral rights acknowledgment.

In the judgment delivered today regarding Dagar's application for an interim injunction, Justice Prathiba M. Singh held that the song 'Veera Raja Weera' has not only been copied from but is also, in fact, the exact copy of 'Shiva Stuti' with a few modifications.

The Court went on to direct Rahman and Madras Talkies to deposit ₹2 crores with the Registry until the conclusion of the suit.

The court further noted that Rahman and Madras Talkies had earlier failed to credit the Junior Dagar brothers for the song composition and ordered that the credit be added for the movie on all online platforms.

Therefore, further costs of ₹2 lakhs were imposed on the defendants.

It was alleged by Dagar that even though Veera Raja Veera has different lyrics, the taal, beat, and the entire musical structure are identical to Shiv Stuti, which has been performed across the globe by the Junior Dagar Brothers and released in albums by PAN Records.

Delhi High Court is pronouncing its verdict on the copyright infringement suit filed by Indian classical singer Faiyaz Wasifuddin Dagar against music composer AR Rahman. pic.twitter.com/uA4Lked0dE

— Bar and Bench (@barandbench) April 25, 2025

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The charges were rejected by Rahman, who argued that Shiv Stuti is a traditional composition in the dhrupad genre and hence in the public domain. He added that Veera Raja Veera was indeed an original composition that had been worked out entirely in the West with 227 layers of music, far beyond the conventions of Hindustani classical music.

Dagar was represented by lawyers Neel Mason and Arjun Harkauli.

Rahman was represented by Senior Advocate Amit Sibal, directed by Bharucha & Partners (Kaushik Moitra - Partner, Vaishnavi Rao - Managing Associate, Karnika Vallabh - Counsel, Subhalaxmi Sen - Senior Associate).

Madras Talkies and Lyca Productions were represented by Advocates Saikrishna Rajagopal and Sneha Jain.

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