Why is veteran superstar Thiyagaraja Bhagavathar's grandson suing Dulquer Salmaan's Kaantha?

Actor-producer Dulquer Salmaan's much-expected 'Kaantha' along with Rana Daggubati had landed in a controversy. A day after the trailer of Kaantha was released, and it went viral among the audience, legendary actor and musician Thiyagaraja Bhagavathar's grandson, B. Thiyagarajan, had petitioned a court in Chennai seeking a ban on the film. In his petition, Thiyagarajan argued that the movie depicts his grandfather in a bad light. 

Thiyagarajan argued that the movie seems to show that his grandfather had lived a life of loose morals, who became blind towards the end of his life, became a pauper, destitute, sought alms, lived in penury and died of indebtedness which is completely a false claim. 

Stating that his grandfather had touched millions of life through his divine music, he said that Thiyagaraja Bhagavathar was not just a popular film personality in those days, but a carnatic musician who mesmerised his fans and followers with his beautiful voice. " He was a modest, devout, and simple man of great compassion and charitable disposition who remained a teetotaller and non-smoker all his life. Till the time of his death, he lived a dignified life with no economic necessity," he stated in the petition. 

He further pointed out that after being falsely implicated in a case, Thiyagarajan said that his grandfather, popularly known as MKT, did not have a successful career and passed away in 1959. MKT was however acquitted in the murder case later. Thiyagarajan also said in the petition that MKT's vision was diminished and was not blind, as was claimed in the movie.

Demanding a permanent injunction restraining the makers from releasing, screening, distributing, publishing, streaming or exhibiting the movie in any manner, he pointed out that the makers of Kaantha have made a baseless version of MKT's life. He called the film's version to be undignified and defamatory which cannot be screened even when the names of the characters are changed. "If a prudent person can recall the personality, it would be nothing but tarnishing the image of a person who cannot defend," he argued in this petition. 

Set in the 1950s, Kaantha is a period drama directed by Selvamani Selvaraj with Dulquer Salmaan, Rana Daggubati, Samuthirakani and Bhagyashree Borse in the lead. Produced by Dulquer Salmaan and Rana Daggubati under the banner of Wayfarer Films and Spirit Media, Kaantha has music composed by Jhanu Chanthar. The movie is slated to hit the theatres on November 14. The film explores the strained relationship between a legendary Tamil director, Ayya, and the movie star he helped achieve fame, Chandran, played by Samuthirakani and Dulquer, respectively. Dulquer plays the lead role as T.K. Mahadevan.

Kaantha's trailer, released a few days ago, shows an egotistical war between mentor and protege when Chandran decides to rename Ayya’s female-centric film, Shaantha, to Kaantha. The war between the two slowly escalates from bruised egos to physical altercation.