The controversy around Dhurandhar took a sudden turn this week, and not the kind many were expecting. What started as a serious legal fight over alleged script theft has now quietly wrapped up inside the courtroom itself. Director Aditya Dhar and filmmaker Santosh Kumar have decided to move past the issue, at least for now, after an apology changed the direction of the entire case. It’s one of those situations where the legal drama almost became as big as the film itself, but ended without a full-blown courtroom battle.
The issue originally came into the spotlight earlier this year when Santosh Kumar accused Dhar of copying his script titled “D-Saheb” for the film’s storyline. These claims didn’t just stay behind closed doors, they were openly discussed in media interactions, which is what pushed Dhar to take legal action. He approached the Bombay High Court, arguing that the repeated public allegations were harming his reputation and needed to be addressed legally. Considering how big the film had already become, the timing of the controversy only made things more intense.
According to court proceedings reported this week, things changed when Santosh Kumar issued an apology in front of the court. The bench led by Justice Arif Doctor recorded that the apology was formally accepted by Dhar’s legal team, and because of that, Dhar chose not to continue pursuing the defamation case further. This effectively closed the matter in court, with the judge noting that nothing more remained to be decided once the apology was on record. It’s a rare situation where a high-profile dispute ends without escalating into a long legal fight, which many had expected.
However, the story doesn’t fully end here. The court made it clear that Santosh Kumar still has the freedom to pursue legal action separately if he wants to claim ownership over the script. That means while the defamation angle is settled, the larger question around the originality of the story could still come back in a different form. So technically, the door isn’t completely shut, it’s just that this particular case has been resolved for now.
What makes all of this even more interesting is the timing, because the film itself has been performing massively at the box office. Led by Ranveer Singh, “Dhurandhar” turned into a major commercial success, crossing huge milestones both in India and overseas. The story, which follows an undercover Indian spy navigating dangerous territory in Pakistan’s Lyari, connected strongly with audiences looking for high-stakes action and drama. Alongside Singh, Akshaye Khanna also received attention for his role as the gang leader, adding more weight to the narrative.
The sequel, Dhurandhar: The Revenge, only pushed things further, pulling in even bigger numbers globally. Ironically, it was after the sequel’s release that the allegations gained more traction, with Santosh Kumar claiming that parts of the second film closely matched his registered script. That’s when the issue escalated publicly, eventually leading to the legal route Dhar took.
This situation kind of reflects a bigger pattern we’ve been seeing in the industry lately. As films grow bigger and stakes get higher, disputes around originality and creative ownership are also becoming more common. At the same time, not every case goes all the way to a final judgment, many end like this one, with partial closure but lingering questions. For now, though, Dhar can move forward without the immediate legal pressure, and the focus shifts back to the film’s success rather than the controversy around it.
