A city civil court has passed an ex-parte injunction against actor Kamal Haasan, stopping him from making or sharing any remarks that claim linguistic superiority over Kannada language, literature, land, or culture until the next hearing.
Bengaluru: A city civil court has issued an ex-parte injunction against actor Kamal Haasan, prohibiting him from posting, making, issuing, writing, publishing, or distributing any statements or remarks that assert linguistic superiority over the Kannada language, literature, land, and culture until the next hearing.
This order was granted by an Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge in Bengaluru after considering a lawsuit brought by the Kannada Sahitya Parishat (KSP), represented by its president, Mahesh Joshi.
The court also directed that summons be issued to Kamal Haasan, scheduling the case for further review on August 30. The lawsuit seeks a permanent injunction against the actor for making defamatory remarks about the Kannada language and culture.
The actor had remarked about Kannada during the audio launch of his film “Thug Life” in Chennai, stating that Kannada is derived from Tamil. The KSP’s lawsuit asserts that this statement has deeply offended the sentiments of Kannadigas.
The KSP stated,
“The reason that this has caused immense pain and anguish to people is because the statement is manifestly and objectively untrue and it has been made with a sense of chauvinism, superiority and arrogance. The intent of the defendant (Kamal Haasan) was to try and give a sarcastic and back handed compliment, which would please the people of Tamil Nadu, but irk and insult the people of Karnataka,”
The dispute revolves around Karnataka’s ban on the actor’s film, which followed his controversial comments regarding the origins of the Kannada language.
Protests erupted in Karnataka following Haasan’s remarks, with several organizations calling for a boycott of the film, leading to an ongoing clash between Haasan’s supporters and pro-Kannada groups.
“Thug Life” was released in cinemas nationwide on June 5.
The Tamil film, which marks a reunion between the 70-year-old actor and filmmaker Mani Ratnam since 1987’s “Nayakan,” faced a ban in Karnataka following Haasan’s remarks about the Kannada language, which caused controversy. It was also released in Telugu, Hindi, and Malayalam.
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