New Delhi: Ilaiyaraaja has built a long, well-documented reputation for going after anyone who has used his music without proper consent. This time he finds himself on the receiving end of such a notice.
Composer Ilaiyaraaja has been restrained by the Delhi High Court from broadcasting, communicating or claiming ownership over songs from 134 films. The court ruled in favour of Saregama India Ltd. in the copyright dispute with the composer.
Justice Tushar Rao Gedela held that while Ilaiyaraaja continues to enjoy copyright over the musical compositions he created for the films, those rights do not extend to the sound recordings incorporated in cinematograph films. The copyright in the sound recordings rests with the producer—in this case, Saregama India Ltd. The court further held that Ilaiyaraaja’s rights under the Copyright Act are confined only to the musical compositions and cannot be interpreted as ownership over the complete film soundtrack.
Saregama and Ilaiyaraaja had already been fighting over the Tamil song En Iniya Pon Nilave, and in January last year the Delhi High Court ruled in Saregama’s favour.
According to Saregama, between 1976 and 2001, it entered into assignment agreements with the producers of several cinematograph films. By virtue of these agreements, it claimed ownership of the copyrights in the sound recordings as well as the underlying musical and literary works of the songs forming part of those films. The company further stated that it has been exclusively exploiting these copyrights since their release.
The order covering 134 films includes some of featuring Ilaiyaraaja’s finest works such as Annakili (1976), 16 Vayathinile (1977), Mullum Malarum (1978), Netrikkann (1981), and Raaja Paarvai (1981).
Ilaiyaraaja has received several honours, including the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2012, the Padma Bhushan in 2010, and the Padma Vibhushan in 2018. He has also been a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha since 2022.
Saregama claimed that during the first week of February 2026, they discovered that Ilaiyaraaja had uploaded the same versions of the songs on digital music platforms such as Amazon Music, Apple iTunes, JioSaavn and Spotify, while also claiming ownership over the content. The company further alleged that Ilaiyaraaja had issued a legal notice on 13 January 2026, claiming rights over the musical works composed, arranged and orchestrated by him across his film career.
(Edited by Theres Sudeep)