The Telugu movie team of Brahmotsavam has landed in soup reportedly for violating copyrights by using the lyrics and music of a famous Tulu song. The team which composed the original song has claimed damages to the tune of Rs 25 lakhs and sought an apology from Telugu movie makers for violating the copyrights.
It was in 2007 a composition by Siri channel of coastal Karnataka hit the music charts and enthralled music lovers in India and abroad specially in the Middle East.
The Tulu song with lyrics ‘A…lele…yereg madme(A…lele…whose wedding is it ?) drew the attention of music lovers and the the music album gained lot of popularity in India and abroad.
The Brahmotsavam team has used the first 36 seconds of the original song in the movie in a sequence involving the lead actor who while accompanying his family on a tour dances to the tune of the hit Tulu song.
Upset by these developments the Tulu album makers have claimed damages to the tune of Rs 25 lakhs from the film producer of Brahmotsavam Prasad V. Patluri and actor Mahesh Babu and sought an apology from them for violating copyrights through their advocate Shashiraj Kavoor.
Though the title of the song was used in a Kannada film earlier it was done after taking permission from the original album makers.
It remains to be seen whether the Telugu movie team will dance to the tune ‘A Lele…yereg Madme’ if they are asked to shell out Rs 25 lakhs as damages or the cash rich Telugu film team just pays the damages and carries the famed Tulu song to new heights in a different way!