Bangalore: Nithyananda Files Rs 3 Cr-plus Libel Suit
Bangalore, Sep 24 (Bangalore Mirror): Rupees Three crore four hundred and fifty-six only: That is the amount of compensation Swami Paramahamsa Nithyananda has demanded, alleging that the film, Sathyananda, is aimed at defaming him. A mere mortal, perhaps, could not have conjured up such a figure. But with the controversial godman involved, even hard-nosed money matters come laced with mumbo-jumbo.
Earlier this week, Nithyananda successfully obtained a temporary injunction on the release and promotion of Sathyananda from a city civil court. He followed it up, demanding a compensation for defamation, fixing the figure at Rs 3,00,00,456. A source close to the godman said that the figure was prescribed by a numerologist. “The numbers in it (3, 4, 5 & 6) add up to 18, which in turn denotes the numerical 9 (1+8), which is auspicious. Also 3, 4, 5 & 6 represent ascendancy,” the source told Bangalore Mirror.
The compensation amount has been sought from the film's director-producer, Madan Patel, and its lead actor, Ravi Chetan. Nithyananda's contention was that Patel, despite giving a memo to the court, stating that he was not making a film on the godman, projected the film in promotional ventures as a story based on the life of Nithyananda.
“Reputation is not something you could quantify. The amount of compensation sought is nothing more than a particular figure considered auspicious,” the source said.
Issuing the temporary injunction, VIII additional City Civil and Sessions judge Ashwatha Narayana observed that Nithyananda had claimed “at the age of 33 itself, he has achieved the fame of being the most watched religious preacher on the Internet.” The court hasn’t yet disposed of the case.
In fact, it was Facebook that helped Nithyananda in getting a temporary injunction on the promotion and release of Sathyananda. Producer-director Patel had told the court that the film was not based on the godman, but posted in his Facebook account, soliciting information from people who claimed to have been “cheated” of “money, property or chastity” by Nithyananda. The court order noted that many people responded to the post, and Patel thanked them — the exchanges clearly mentioning that the film is indeed based on the godman.
Following the injunction, Patel went ahead and anno-unced he would be releasing the film. Nithyananda’s supporters are gearing up to file a contempt case against the film-maker.
When BM contacted Patel, he said, “Nithyananda has asked for Rs 3,00,00,456. Will he allow me to release the film if I pay him the money? Is he worth just that much?”
Help from Hollywood
Sources told BM that Swami Nithyananda’s associates had approached a prominent film technician from Hollywood to prove that the infamous video tape, made public by the godman’s former driver Lenin Karuppan, was a fake. The video had been a big-time sensation until actor Ranjitha's petition led to a court staying its telecast and transmission.
Television channels re-moved copies of the tape from their websites, but some lesser known sites have still retained it on the Internet. “It is tough to enforce court order in cyber space,” the source said.
“The report from the Hollywood expert is awaited anytime now. It will prove that the video was morphed,” he added.