Just days before its release, Kaantha has been dragged to court over allegations that it misrepresents legendary actor M.K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar.
Just days before its scheduled release on November 14, Dulquer Salmaan’s upcoming period drama Kaantha has hit a legal roadblock. B. Thiagarajan, the grandson of iconic Tamil actor and Carnatic musician Thyagaraja Bhagavathar (popularly known as MKT), has approached a Chennai court to stop the film from releasing. He claims the movie portrays his grandfather in a disrespectful and misleading way. According to a report by LiveLaw, Thiagarajan alleged that Kaantha shows MKT as “a man of loose morals” who spent his later years blind, penniless, and struggling. He refuted this portrayal, insisting it is completely untrue. He said that while his grandfather did face a career setback after being implicated and later acquitted in a criminal case, he continued to live a dignified and financially stable life until his death in 1959.
The plea also clarified that although MKT’s eyesight had weakened, he was never fully blind. Thiagarajan described him as a respected, devout, charitable man who never drank and remained admired across Tamil Nadu.
He further argued that filmmakers are legally expected to seek permission from a public figure’s surviving family members before depicting their life on screen a step he alleges the makers of Kaantha skipped. Even if names are changed, he said, audiences can still identify who is being referenced, which can damage the reputation of someone who is no longer alive to defend themselves. With this, he has requested a permanent ban on the film’s release, screening, and digital distribution.
So far, the makers of Kaantha haven’t officially responded to the legal plea. However, in earlier promotions, Dulquer Salmaan and the team have repeatedly stated that the film is entirely fictional and not inspired by any real person. Co-producer Rana Daggubati also dismissed the accusations as “pretty baseless” during a Q&A session on X, saying there is “no real reference at all.”
Directed by Selvamani Selvaraj, Kaantha stars Dulquer, Samuthirakani, and Bhagyashri Borse, with Rana Daggubati also part of the cast. Interestingly, this isn’t Dulquer’s first pre-release legal challenge — his 2022 film Kurup, based on fugitive Sukumara Kurup, also faced similar hurdles before becoming a box-office success.
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