Court restrains publication of defamatory content against filmmaker Sayani Gupta

The court directed Meta, Reddit, Deccan Chronicle and other digital platforms to take down such content, while clarifying that the defendant was free to pursue legal remedies and publish content based on facts

MUMBAI: The city civil and sessions court has restrained filmmaker Vinita Negi and others from publishing, circulating or reproducing content alleging fellow filmmaker and actor Sayani Gupta’s short film, Aasmani, was based on her unfinished documentary project, Prabha. The court, while hearing Gupta’s ₹9-crore defamation suit against Negi and others, also directed Meta, Reddit, Deccan Chronicle and other digital platforms to take down such content, while clarifying that Negi was free to pursue legal remedies and publish content based on facts.

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According to Gupta’s plea, in April this year, Negi complained before the Screenwriters Association (SWA) that Gupta’s short film comprised an “outright extraction” of her unfinished documentary project, and accused Gupta of copyright infringement and breach of trust. On May 19, Gupta wrote back to the SWA claiming Negi’s complaint was “malicious, defamatory, and entirely fabricated”, and categorically denied the allegations, maintaining that she had never accessed or viewed any script, treatment, link, footage or other material allegedly shared by Negi.

In her plea, Gupta referred to a ‘statement of support’ bearing 250 signatures which Negi circulated among members of the film industry while proceedings before the SWA were pending. While the statement created an impression that Negi’s allegations had been independently assessed by members of the industry, the vast majority of the signatories could not have personally viewed Aasmani, the plea noted.

On Thursday, the court granted interim relief to Gupta by restraining the publication and circulation of allegedly defamatory content and ordering the takedown of such content from digital platforms. The court rejected Gupta’s request for a blanket restraint and specifically clarified that the injunction did not prevent Negi from pursuing legal remedies or publishing material based on true and verified facts.

“Nothing in this order shall prevent the defendants (Negi and others) from publishing accurate and verified information based on official record of investigation or judicial proceedings or legal finding of any authority constituted under law,” the court said.