Maidaan: Mysore Court Halts Release Of Ajay Devgn Starrer Over Plagiarism Allegations

Ajay Devgn starrer Maidaan, which hit the theatres today, April 11, has run into legal trouble. A Karnataka-based writer, Anil Kumar, has alleged that makers have plagiarised the story from his script on the life of Syed Abdul Rahim, India's former football coach. Subsequently, the Mysore court has put a stay on the release of the film.

Maidaan chronicles the life and journey of Syed Abdul Rahim, a pioneering football coach (1952 and 1962) who revolutionised the sport in India. Due to his contribution and dedication to football, the Indian Football Team was called "Brazil of Asia".  

What has Anil Kumar alleged?

As per media reports, the writer took to his LinkedIn handle and claimed that in 2010 he wrote a story on the life of Syed Abdul Rahim and dropped a post about it in 2018. Soon after, he got in touch with ad director Sukhdas Suryavanshi, who called him to Mumbai with a promise that he would make him meet Aamir Khan. Sukhdas asked him to get the script, as per the writer. However, when he reached Sukhdas' Mumbai office, he couldn't meet Mr Khan "due to certain reasons". Nonetheless, Kumar claims he handed over the script and got it registered with the Screen Writers Association in Bombay under the title Paadanduka.

Sukhdas Suryavanshi went on to become Assistant Director on Maidaan.

“Recently, I heard that a movie named Maidaan is getting released, I was surprised because even I have the same story. When I looked at the teaser and their statements, I got to know that it was my story. They have twisted the main story itself and made this movie. I named the story Paadakanduka for three Khans," Kumar wrote in his post.

On noticing this, Anil moved the principal district and session court in Mysuru. On April 8, the court issued the order directing Zee Studios to halt the release of Maidaan. The next hearing is scheduled for April 24.

Makers react to Maidaan's stay by Mysore Court

Bay View Projects LLP, a co-producer on the movie, issued a statement on Thursday. It stated that since they received the court order after the release of the movie, it was infructuous under the law. It also added that they'd be appealing against the order in Karnataka High Court. Check out the statement below:

Mumbai Court orders Boney Kapoor to pay Rs 96 lakh to a vendor

This is not the first legal action Maidaan is facing. Earlier, a vendor had lodged a complaint against producer Boney Kapoor for non-payment of dues which allegedly amounted to Rs 1 crore for over two years. A few days later, it was reported that the vendor won the case and the Mumbai court allegedly ordered the Maidaan producer to pay a whopping amount of Rs 96 lakh to a vendor.

What else do we know about Maidaan?

Helmed by Amit Sharma, the film stars Priyamani, Gajraj Rao, and Rudranil Ghosh in pivotal roles. In the film, Ajay Devgn plays the titular role of Syed Abdul Rahim, a man who put the Indian football team on the global map.