A fresh public dispute has erupted between rapper Arivu and music composer Santhosh Narayanan over the authorship, ownership and credit for the viral 2021 Tamil song “Enjoy Enjaami.” The exchange unfolded on social media after a user accused singer Dhee and her stepfather Santhosh Narayanan of “stealing” the song from Arivu, reigniting a controversy that first surfaced in 2022.
The trigger was a social media post sharing a clip from the popular song, following which a user alleged that Dhee and Narayanan had taken the song from Arivu.
Dhee and her dad literally went ahead and stole this song from Arivu anna https://t.co/hRGsZX266w
— ArunAnnow (@ArunAnnow) March 12, 2026
The accusation quickly gained traction online and revived older narratives surrounding the track’s credit and ownership.
Responding to the allegation, Santhosh Narayanan dismissed the claim and explained the creative process behind the song. “Konjam rest edunga thambi. Some useful info already available everywhere if you only look for it,” he wrote. Narayanan stated that the idea for the song was conceived by Dhee, with the core storyline and concept shaped by filmmaker Manikandan, who was working on Kadaisi Vivasayi with him at the time. “I composed, produced and created all the melodies in the song. Arivu wrote almost all the words and also performed,” he said, adding that some traditional Oppari lines were adapted by Arivu.
The composer also criticised what he described as attempts to politicise the song’s success, remarking that narratives around the track began shifting after it became widely popular.
Arivu, however, reiterated that he had written the lyrics, composed the main vocal melody and performed the song based on his cultural experiences. He alleged that he was credited only as a “featuring artist” and received neither ownership nor royalties from the track.
As the exchange intensified, sections of the Dravidianist ecosystem online began targeting Narayanan personally, bringing up his Brahmin caste identity while amplifying accusations of appropriation.
Here are some such posts.
What began as a dispute over credit and royalties for Enjoy Enjaami has quickly taken a predictable turn. Instead of focusing on contracts, evidence, and creative contributions, sections of the Dravidianist ecosystem online have shifted the debate to Santhosh Narayanan’s Brahmin identity, framing the issue as caste appropriation. This pattern is familiar in Tamil Nadu’s political discourse: when facts become inconvenient, the argument pivots to identity.
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