AR Rahman has told the Supreme Court he will give credit to the Junior Dagar Brothers' composition Shiva Stuti for inspiring his Ponniyin Selvan II song Veera Raja Veera
AR Rahman
Music composer A.R. Rahman on Friday assured the Supreme Court that he would acknowledge the song Veera Raja Veera, featured in the Tamil film Ponniyin Selvan II, as being inspired by the traditional composition Shiva Stuti of classical vocalist Ustad Faiyaz Wasifuddin Dagar’s family.
A R Rahman agrees to give credit to Dagar Brothers
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Rahman, informed the apex court that the composer had agreed, as an interim arrangement, to acknowledge the performance of the late Ustad N. Faiyazuddin Dagar and Ustad N. Zahiruddin Dagar — popularly known as the Junior Dagar Brothers.
He clarified that the concession was made "without prejudice" to Rahman's rights and contentions in the main civil suit pending before the Delhi High Court.
Recording the submission, a bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul Pancholi directed that the modification in the song credits be reflected across all social media and OTT platforms within five weeks.
The CJI-led Bench made it clear that the civil suit will proceed on its own merits and would not be influenced by any observations made during the present proceedings.
With these observations, the Supreme Court disposed of the special leave petition (SLP) filed by classical vocalist Ustad Faiyaz Wasifuddin Dagar, challenging the Delhi High Court order that had set aside an earlier single-judge injunction against Rahman and other defendants.
During an earlier hearing, the CJI Surya Kant-led Bench had observed that the Dagarvani tradition has made an unparalleled contribution to Indian classical music and suggested that some form of acknowledgement could be considered instead of entering into "legal niceties".
About the case
Renowned classical vocalist Ustad Faiyaz Wasifuddin Dagar had alleged that the song Veera Raja Veera from Ponniyin Selvan II is inspired by his family’s traditional composition Shiva Stuti.
In a judgment passed on September 24, 2025, a division bench of Justices C. Hari Shankar and Om Prakash Shukla of the Delhi High Court had held that there was no prima facie material to establish that the Junior Dagar Brothers were the authors or composers of "Shiva Stuti", and had vacated the interim directions, including the order to deposit Rs 2 crore and to modify the song credits.
The Delhi High Court drew a clear distinction between a performer’s rights and authorship, observing that "mere performance or fixation of a musical piece does not, by itself, confer copyright in the underlying composition".
Aggrieved by the setting aside of interim relief, Wasifuddin Dagar has now approached the Supreme Court, seeking restoration of recognition and protection of the moral and copyright interests of the Junior Dagar Brothers.
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