The row over Kamal Haasan’s controversial remarks on the Kannada language continues to escalate even a month after his now-infamous statement. In a fresh development, a Bengaluru civil court has passed an ex parte interim injunction restraining the veteran actor from making any further comments against Kannada.

On Friday, the Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge issued the order while hearing a suit filed by Kannada Sahitya Parishat (KSP) president Mahesh Joshi. As reported by PTI, the organisation sought an injunction to prevent Kamal from making allegedly defamatory remarks about the Kannada language and culture.

 

The court observed merit in the plea and passed an interim injunction barring Haasan from “posting, making, writing, or publishing any statement or remarks claiming linguistic superiority over the Kannada language, or making any statements against the Kannada language, literature, land and culture.” The court also issued a summons to the actor and scheduled the next hearing for August 30, at which point Kamal will have to present his case.

The controversy began in May during the Bengaluru music launch of his latest film Thug Life, where Kamal Haasan remarked that “Kannada was born out of Tamil.” His statement triggered widespread backlash from pro-Kannada groups and cultural organisations, with many demanding an apology. Kamal stood firm and refused to retract his statement, resulting in Thug Life not being released in Karnataka despite legal attempts by the filmmakers to secure a release.

Though the team secured a favourable court ruling, it came too late. The film never hit theatres in the state and underwhelmed at the box office elsewhere.

Thug Life, which reunited Kamal Haasan with director Mani Ratnam after nearly four decades, failed to make a splash with audiences or critics. Also starring Silambarasan, Trisha Krishnan, Joju George, Aishwarya Lekshmi, and others, the film managed to gross just ₹93 crore worldwide. It is currently available for streaming on Netflix.