Lyca opposes plea to stall 'Darbar' release;HC reserves orders

Producer of superstar Rajinikanth starrer 'Darbar' on Friday opposed in the Madras High Court a Malaysian distributor's plea for stalling the release of the Tamil film and described as 'false' the claim it owed over Rs 23 crore to the foreign firm.

When the civil suit filed by DMY Creations SDN BHD came up for hearing before Justice G Jayachandran, Lyca Productions Private Limited submitted the plea has been moved only with a view to harassing it ahead of the release of the high stakes movie, set for January 9.

Counsel for the company described as 'false' and 'baseless' the claim of DMY Creations that it (Lyca) owed Rs 23.70 crore in connection with distribution of various Tamil films produced by the latter including "2.0", "Kaala" and Vadachennai in Malaysia in the past.

After conclusion of the arguments, the Judge reserved orders on the suit.

DMY Creations claimed Lyca had promised to clear the 'dues' of Rs 23.70 crore before the release of their latest production Darbar and also to give first preference to them for the film.

But it was learnt that Lyca had been negotiating with some others to give territorial rights in Malaysian region.

If the court does not protect the firm with an interim order restraining Lyca from releasing Darbar before settling the dues, the chances of recovery will become very slim, DMY Creations said.

The petitioner sought attachment of the positive and negatives of the movie Darbar and all other materials which aid transmission of the film pending disposal of the suit.