Bangalore: A court on Tuesday restrained the
production and shooting of a Kannada film purportedly based on
the life of controversial self-styled godman Nithyananda,
facing criminal charges including rape, till April 23.
Additional Civil Judge Ashwathnarayana passed the
interim injunction after hearing a defamation suit by
Nithyananda against the producer-director of film 'Satyananda'
Madan Patel (popularly known as Madana Mallu) and the hero of
the film, Ravi Chethan.
Senior counsel Krishna Kumar Bhagawati, who
represented Nithyananda, submitted that the story of the film
"defamed a religious person who was working for the good of
the society and was a obscene and wrong portrayal of his
life."
Bhagawati pointed out that despite a lawyer's notice
being served on Madana Mallu, he proceeded with the shooting
of the film. The counsel sought a compensation of over Rs
three crore from Mallu.
Nithyananda landed in controversy in March last year
after a local television channel aired a purported video
footage showing him in a compromising position with a Tamil
actress.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, April 06, 2011, 00:57