Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and its owner Kavya Maran have had a loud week. The franchise was already in the middle of a storm after Sunrisers Leeds bought Pakistan spinner Abrar Ahmed at The Hundred auction. The move that did not go down well with many Indian fans. Now, the wider Sun ecosystem has landed in another major controversy, this time involving Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and a legal battle in the Madras High Court.
According to The Indian Express, Sun TV Network Limited has filed a copyright infringement suit against CSK for allegedly using songs, dialogues and background score elements from Jailer, Jailer 2 and Coolie in a promotional video released ahead of IPL 2026. The video, put out by CSK on March 1 to unveil their new jersey, used audio closely associated with Rajinikanth’s films. It quickly caught attention online but was later taken down and re-uploaded with changes to the sound.
That, it now appears, was not a random edit. In its plaint, accessed by Indian Express, Sun TV argued that the films in question were its productions and that composer Anirudh Ravichander had assigned all music exploitation rights to the company through a written agreement. The network alleged that CSK had used copyrighted material without permission across multiple social media platforms, including Instagram, X, YouTube and Facebook.
SRH’s legal fight with CSK
Sun TV has also linked the video to commercial gain, arguing that the disputed material was used to help market CSK’s IPL 2026 jersey and merchandise. Each jersey, the company told the court, is being sold for Rs 2,399, and the use of Rajinikanth film audio in a Chennai-based franchise’s campaign could have had clear promotional value.
Sun TV has asked the court to restrain CSK from using its copyrighted works and also sought details on the money allegedly earned through such unauthorised use. During the hearing, senior counsel J Ravindran, appearing for Sun TV, said CSK had already stopped using the material after being sent an official email on March 1. Representing CSK, senior counsel PS Raman told the court that the franchise had indeed stopped using the audio and would seek permission in the future if it wanted to use such material again.
What makes this matter especially interesting is that Tamil film music and dialogues have long been part of IPL social media culture, particularly for Chennai-based content. CSK have often leaned on cinema references in the past, as have other franchises in different languages and markets. But this is the first time a production house has taken a franchise to court over it in such a direct way.
