‘Hera Pheri 3’ Faces Legal Battle: South Producer Claims Rights Dispute Against Firoz Nadiadwala

The upcoming Akshay Kumar, Paresh Rawal, and Suniel Shetty starrer Hera Pheri 3 has hit fresh trouble as the film reaches the Madras High Court. A South Indian producer has alleged that Firoz Nadiadwala is making the third installment without proper rights.

Original Rights Holder Files Petition

Sevan Arts International, a production house based in South India, has approached the Madras High Court, claiming that the rights to the Hera Pheri franchise do not belong to Firoz Nadiadwala. According to their petition, Nadiadwala only had the rights to make a Hindi remake of the 1989 Malayalam film Ramji Rao Speaking, which he used to produce Hera Pheri in 2000, directed by Priyadarshan.

Later, Nadiadwala reportedly produced the 2006 sequel Phir Hera Pheri without authorization and then sold the rights for the third installment to Akshay Kumar’s production house, Cape of Good Films. Sevan Arts International claims that this was done without their consent.

Managing Director Vijaykumar Speaks Out

Vijaykumar, Managing Director of Sevan Arts International, told Hindustan Times:
“I acquired all rights to the Hera Pheri franchise in 2022 from the original producer, Aditya Films. They told me that Nadiadwala was only authorized to make a Hindi remake, which he did. However, he also made a second version in 2006. He was not authorized to create sequels or prequels, nor to use the characters.”

Vijaykumar added that both he and the original producer realized only later that Nadiadwala had violated the agreement. “We approached Akshay Kumar and learned that Nadiadwala had sold the third installment’s rights to his production house. We had no choice but to send him a legal notice and take the matter to court,” he said.

Akshay Kumar’s Production House Responds

When contacted, a spokesperson from Akshay Kumar’s production house said that they had purchased the rights directly from Firoz Nadiadwala. Director Priyadarshan also stated that he was unaware of the dispute, while Nadiadwala has yet to respond publicly.

Box Office Performance of the Franchise

The first film, Hera Pheri, released on 31 March 2000 with a budget of ₹7.5 crore, earned ₹12.35 crore net in India and ₹21.42 crore worldwide. The sequel, Phir Hera Pheri, released on 9 June 2006 with a budget of ₹18 crore, earned ₹40.82 crore net domestically and ₹69.13 crore globally. Both films were commercially successful, making the third installment a highly anticipated release.

The Legal Stakes

The current dispute raises questions over the legitimacy of the third installment, with potential implications for production, release, and intellectual property rights. The Madras High Court will decide whether Firoz Nadiadwala had the authority to proceed with the sequel, or whether the rights exclusively belong to Sevan Arts International.