Netflix released the much-awaited documentary capturing the wedding of Nayanthara and Vignesh Shivan on the former's birthday, November 18, 2024. Although the actress married her director boyfriend in June 2022, it took two years for Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairytale to arrive on the platform. Even before its release on Netflix, there were already sparks flying. Nayanthara had penned an open letter to actor-producer Dhanush, criticising him for refusing to allow the use of footage related to the 2015 movie Naanum Rowdy Dhaan and threatening legal action for including a few seconds of behind-the-scenes footage from that film. Nayanthara Responds to Dhanush’s INR 10 Crore Legal Notice Ahead of the Release of Her Netflix Documentary ‘Nayanthara: Beyond the Fairytale’; Read the Actress’ Open Letter.

This story has now taken an intriguing turn, as it appears that despite the reported legal threat, Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairytale still includes the BTS footage from Naanum Rowdy Dhaan. This raises the question of whether this defiance will prompt Dhanush to pursue legal action.

Watch the 'Naanum Rowdy Dhaan' BTS Footage Used in 'Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairytale':

Why 'Naanum Rowdy Dhaan' is Important to Nayanthara and Vignesh Shivan

Nayanthara and Vignesh Shivan met and fell in love during the filming of the 2015 gangster rom-com Naanum Rowdy Dhaan. The movie, Vignesh's second directorial effort after Podaa Podi, featured Vijay Sethupathi as the male lead and also starred Parthiban, Radhika Sarathkumar, and RJ Balaji. It was produced by Dhanush under his banner, Wunderbar Films. ‘Nayanthara: Beyond the Fairytale’ Review: Nayanthara’s Inspiring Career Story Meets a Superficial Wedding Special.

Naanum Rowdy Dhaan was a moderate box office success, and its soundtrack, composed by Anirudh Ravichander, remains some of his most popular work. Nayanthara won the Best Actress award at the 63rd Filmfare Awards South and the 5th South Indian International Movie Awards for her performance. During one of her award acceptance speeches, Nayanthara revealed that Dhanush had not liked her performance in the film and said she was 'sorry' about that, to which Dhanush, present in the audience, reacted with laughter at the awkward disclosure.

Watch the Viral Video:

Given that Naanum Rowdy Dhaan was one of her most beloved roles and the film where she met her future husband, it holds a special place in Nayanthara's heart, which is why she wanted to include clips from the shoot in her documentary.

Dhanush's Legal Notice to Nayanthara and Vignesh Shivan

On November 16, Nayanthara shared an open letter on Instagram, accusing Dhanush of sending a legal notice demanding INR 10 crore for the use of three seconds of BTS footage from Naanum Rowdy Dhaan, which was featured in the documentary's trailer. In the letter, she wrote: "We were startled to read those lines wherein you questioned the usage of some videos shot on our personal devices, which included BTS visuals that are already publicly available on social media, and claimed a sum of Rs 10 crores as damages for a mere 3 seconds. This is an all-time low from you and speaks volumes about your character." Nayanthara and Dhanush Feud: ‘Naanum Rowdy Dhaan’ Producer Warns Actress of Legal Repercussions Over Netflix Documentary, Issues Statement.

See Nayanthara's Open Letter to Dhanush

 

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Dhanush's legal team responded with a statement asserting: "My client is the producer of the film and is aware of where every penny was spent during its production. Your client's claim that my client did not commission any person to shoot the behind-the-scenes footage is baseless, and your client is put to strict proof of the same."

It remains to be seen whether Dhanush's team will follow through with legal action now that the footage has been used in the full documentary.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 18, 2024 09:53 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).