'Maidaan' plagiarism row: Karnataka High Court lifts the ban on the movie, allows its release

'Maidaan' is based on the life of Syed Abdul Rahim also known as Rahim Saab, who was known as the architect of Indian football.

There is good news for Ajay Devgn starrer ‘Maidaan’ as Karnataka High Court has lifted the ban on the movie’s release in the state. It has dismissed the charges of plagiarism against the movie.

The makers of ‘Maidaan’ issued a statement saying that they had received the Mysore court’s orders late and by that time their movie had already hit the theatres.

The Karnataka High Court heard the case today and cleared the movie, hence lifting its release in the state.

The film’s release had to be put on hold in Karnataka after the Mysore sessions court ordered a stay on the release of ‘Maidaan’ following plagiarism charges levelled by a writer named Anil Kumar.

The movie directed by Amit Sharma has Ajay Devgn, Priyamani and Gajrao Rao in pivotal roles.

The controversy arose when writer Anil Kumar made a post on his LinkedIn account saying that he had originally written the story in 2010.

In the long post he wrote: “In 2010, I started writing the story and in 2018, I posted a poster about this, and I got in contact with ad director Sukhdas Suryavanshi through my LinkedIn post. He called me to Bombay (Mumbai) and asked me to get the script. I have the whole chat history. He told me that he’d make me meet Aamir Khan, but I couldn’t meet him for certain reasons. I gave him the story and registered the same with the Screen Writers' Association."

He further wrote: “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."

'Maidaan' has been produced by Boney Kapoor and Zee Studios.

Boney Kapoor’s Bay View Projects LLP, had released a statement earlier today claiming that the notice was served to them after the release of the movie and that it's “infructuous under law.”

"Dear all, we have just been served the copy of the Order of the District Judge restraining the release of the film. At the outset, we would like to place on record that the said order passed by the District Judge is an ex-parte order, without giving us an opportunity of being heard. We were not served any notice prior to the filing of the said suit or hearing of the matter. Additionally, the said order has been passed after the release of the film and therefore, any such order passed that restrains the release of the film is infructuous under law. However, we are filing an appeal against the order before the Hon'ble High Court of Karnataka. We shall move the matter before the Hon'ble High Court for urgent relief in order to stay the operation of the said order," the statement read.

'Maidaan' is based on the life of Syed Abdul Rahim also known as Rahim Saab, who was known as the architect of Indian football. He devoted his life to football and his tenure as a coach was known as the 'golden era' of football in the country.