Sun TV Network has filed a copyright infringement suit in the Madras High Court against Chennai Super Kings (CSK), alleging that the IPL franchise used audio tracks, background music, and dialogues from the Rajinikanth films Jailer, Jailer 2, and Coolie without permission in a promotional video introducing its new jersey for the Indian Premier League 2026 season.
The matter came up before Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy on Friday. Appearing for the television network, senior counsel J. Ravindran told the court that CSK had used copyrighted audio material from the films in a video shared on its social media platforms to promote the team’s new jersey.
He said the broadcaster had issued an email notice to CSK on 1 March 2026, pointing out the alleged unauthorised use of its copyrighted material. According to the counsel, the IPL franchise subsequently stopped using the audio tracks and dialogues after receiving the notice. However, he urged the court to ensure that such use does not recur in the future.
Representing CSK, senior counsel P. S. Raman informed the court that his client had already discontinued the use of the songs, audio tracks, and dialogues from the films, as reported in The Hindu. He said that if the team intends to use such material in the future, it would do so only after obtaining the necessary permissions from the copyright holders.
After recording the statement, Justice Ramamoorthy directed CSK to file an affidavit confirming the undertaking by March 16.
Sun TV Claims Exclusive Rights
In its plaint, Sun TV Network stated that the films Jailer, Jailer 2, and Coolie were produced by its film production arm and that the music composer Anirudh Ravichander had assigned all rights relating to the exploitation of the music to the production company through a written agreement.
The broadcaster submitted a copy of the agreement to the court, with the composer’s remuneration details redacted on the grounds that they formed part of a confidential commercial arrangement.
According to the plaintiff, it was surprised to learn that CSK had used soundtracks and dialogues from the three films in a promotional video released on March 1 to market its IPL 2026 jersey.
Allegation of Commercial Exploitation
Sun TV also informed the court that the jerseys featured in the promotional campaign were priced at ₹2,399 each. The company argued that its copyrighted works had been used without authorisation to support a commercial product launch.
The network has requested the court to issue an injunction restraining CSK from using the material without permission. It has also sought an order directing the franchise to disclose accounts detailing the revenue earned from the allegedly infringing promotional activity.
In addition, Sun TV has asked the court to direct CSK to deposit the revenue connected with the promotion into the court until the civil suit is disposed of, and to pay ₹1 crore as damages for the alleged infringement of copyright.
The most interesting part of this court battle (for me) was that Anirudh has written off the rights of his music to Sun Pictures@ursmusically isn’t it quite unusual at a time when most top composers retain rights to their works? pic.twitter.com/BvlSJqIMVS
— Siddharth Prabhakar (@Sidprabhakar7) March 14, 2026
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