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The copyright dispute between authors Salim Khan/Javed Akhtar and producers Sumeet/Puneet Mehra and Ors. (defendants) over the remake of Zanjeer progresses with the defendants giving an undertaking to the Bombay High Court, on May 3, 2013, stating that the remade Zanjeer will not be released before 30/6/13.
Meanwhile, as reported here, another scriptwriter appealed to the Bombay High Court claiming that one of the directors of the film Bombay Talkies had stolen his story. He asked the court to stay the release of the film. However, the court on May 3, 2013, dismissed his plea.
Courts should pass strictures in such vexatious claims. In the Bombay Talkies matter, after the matter was heard for over an hour in the city civil court, the Plaintiff sought an adjournment since he wanted to refer the dispute to some other association. The adjournment was sought to 2nd May i.e. one day prior to the release of the film. The judge therefore rightly recorded that the Plaintiff was not pressing for any ad-interim reliefs and adjourned the matter to 28th June, 2013. The Judge also recorded in the order that no praecipe would be maintained for hearing ad-interim relief. When appeal was filed by the Plaintiff in the Bombay HC against the said order, the HC after hearing the parties observed that the conduct of the Plaintiff to seek adjournment before City Civil court after conclusion of the hearing was deplorable.
It is however necessary that in such matters heavy costs are imposed on the Plaintiffs. Such conduct is a mockery of the entire process and should be highly discouraged. With the increasing number of pre-release frivolous litigations, we need some strong judicial precedents to act as a deterrent against them.