Thangalaan, Kanguva cannot be released unless Studio Green deposits ₹1 crore each, orders Madras High Court

The Madras High Court on Monday (August 12, 2024) ordered that the film production house Studio Green, run by K.E. Gnanavelraja, cannot release its upcoming movies Thangalaan, starring ‘Chiyan’ Vikram, and Kanguva, starring Suriya, without depositing ₹1 crore each before the release of the two movies.

The Madras High Court on Monday (August 12, 2024) ordered that the film production house Studio Green, run by K.E. Gnanavelraja, cannot release its upcoming movies Thangalaan, starring ‘Chiyaan’ Vikram, and Kanguva, starring Suriya, without depositing ₹1 crore each before the release of the two movies.

A Division Bench of Justices G. Jayachandran and C.V. Karthikeyan ordered that the production firm must deposit ₹1 crore with the Official Assignee on or before Wednesday (August 14) and report compliance before the court on the same day, as Thangalaan is slated to be released in theatres across the country on Thursday (August 15).

The judges further ordered that another ₹1 crore be deposited before the release of Kanguva. The orders were passed on an execution petition filed by the High Court’s Official Assignee, who had been entrusted with the task of recovering the debts due to insolvent businessman Arjunlal Sunderdas (since dead).

The Official Assignee had filed an application in the High Court in 2016 stating that the businessman, accused of cheating people of several crores of rupees by allegedly luring them to invest in his finance and real estate companies, had decided to co-produce a movie in association with Studio Green in 2011 by investing ₹40 crore.

Accordingly, he had paid ₹12.85 crore to the production house on different dates between September 2011 and October 2012 but decided to back off midway due to a paucity of funds. The production house, however, expressed its inability to repay the entire amount to him since it was spent on pre-production.

The insolvent had got back only ₹2.5 crore, thereby leaving a balance of ₹10.35 crore. The Official Assignee urged the court to direct the production house to deposit ₹10.35 crore with 18 percent interest since December 2013 so that the depositors with Mr. Sunderdas could be repaid their money.

Studio Green resisted the application filed by the Official Assignee claiming it had offset the amount due to Mr. Sunderdas by giving him the Hindi remake rights of three Tamil movies titled All in All Azhaguraja, Biriyani, and Madras and asked him to sell those rights using his contacts in the Bollywood.