The Bombay High Court dismissed the defamation suit filed by the filmmaker Aditya Dharthe director of the recently released Bollywood film Dhurandhar, against the filmmaker Santosh Kumar. The controversy arose out of Kumar’s statements at a press conference where he alleged that the film’s script was “copied” from his work titled D Saheb.The matter was disposed of by single judge Arif Doctor on April 30, after Kumar apologized for his statements in the press interaction.
“Mr. Bhura, the lawyer appearing on behalf of Santosh Kumar (who is in the Court) has apologized for his statements in the press conference held on March 30, 2026. Dr. Saraf, the senior counsel appearing on behalf of Aditya Dhar, stated that his client was not intended to be prejudiced by the petition. He accepts the said apology and submits that the suit may now be struck out accordingly. Accordingly, nothing further survives in the Suit and it is accordingly dismissed,” Dr. Justice recorded in the order.While disposing of the case, the court clarified that Kumar is free to seek legal remedies regarding his claim regarding the script. The order stated, “It is clear that if Kumar has any claim against the plaintiff in respect of the script of the film ‘Dhurandhar: The Revenge (2026’), he will be at liberty to do so and this order shall not in any way come in the way of such claim.Dhar had approached the court seeking a restraining order against Kumar for allegedly making defamatory statements after the release of the sequel Dhurandhar: The Revenge (2026). Kumar publicly argued that he had been accused of plagiarism, claiming that the script was copied from a work Kumar had registered with the Screenwriters Association in 2023.Kumar also stated that he had earlier shared his script, D Saheb, with several big production houses, but before any progress was made, Dhar reportedly used the concept to make his own film.The case was heard for the first time on April 8, when the court restrained Kumar from making any further defamatory remarks about Dhar or the film. At a subsequent hearing on April 16, Dr. Justice encouraged both sides to settle the dispute amicably rather than escalate it through a lengthy lawsuit.At the last hearing on April 30, Kumar initially told the court that he was not going to make any more defamatory comments. However, his counsel refused to issue an apology, arguing that the remarks were not directed at Dhar personally. The matter was later brought up again before the court, after which Kumar tendered an apology, leading to a settlement of the dispute.
