Neru - Kerala High Court refuses to stay release of Mohanlal-starrer, here's all we know about the plagiarism charges

Mohanlal-starrer Neru, co-written by Santhi Mayadevi and director Jeethu Joseph, is scheduled to hit the screens on December 21

Neru

Mohanlal-Jeethu Joseph’s courtroom drama, Neru, which is gearing up to hit the theatres on December 21, is facing legal issues even before its release after plagiarism allegations were raised. But the Kerala High Court on Wednesday refused to stay the release of the Mohanlal-starrer on a plea alleging plagiarism.

Scriptwriter Deepu K Unni had filed the petition, alleging that the script of Neru was plagiarised. Unni claimed that he had shared a script, featuring an 'emotional family drama', with the Neru writers Jeethu Joseph and Santhi Mayadevi, who expressed interest in his project and promised to use it in Jeethu's next film.

He had allegedly provided copies of the script and received assurances from them. Unni claims that the movie's trailer contains sequences that are identical to his work. The writer then sought the High Court's intervention to prevent the release of the film.

However, the Kerala High Court Justice Devan Ramachandran has refused the stay the release of the film. But the HC has issued notices to the respondents, including director Jeethu Joseph and co-writer Santhi Mayadevi.

Neru’s plot

According to a synopsis that was leaked on social media, Neru is a gripping legal tale centred around Sara, a visually-impaired sculpture artist who seeks justice after a traumatic incident. Mohanlal and Priyamani will be playing lawyers, with the veteran actor donning the role of an advocate after 13 years.

Cast and crew of Neru

Apart from Mohanlal and Priyamani, the Jeethu Joseph directorial features a stellar cast including Siddique, Jagadish, Anaswara Rajan, Ganesh Kumar, Kalesh Ramanand, Santhi Mayadevi, Nandu, Dr Sree Dhanya, Harikrishnan, Aditi Ravi, and others in prominent roles. Actress Santhi Mayadevi, who is also a real-life advocate, co-wrote the screenplay of Neru along with director Jeethu Joseph.

Vishnu Shyam has scored the music for the courtroom drama. Satheesh Kurup is cranking the camera for the film, while Vinayak VS handles editing. Neru is bankrolled by Antony Perumbavoor under the popular production banner, Aashirvad Cinemas.

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