Stop defaming Palash Muchhal: Bombay High Court tells Smriti Mandhana’s friend
The Bombay High Court has restrained filmmaker Vidyaan Mane from making defamatory statements against singer-composer Palash Muchhal and his mother. The order comes after controversial interviews following a business dispute and the annulment of a marriage.
The Bombay High Court has restrained filmmaker Vidyaan Mane from making defamatory statements against singer-composer Palash Muchhal and his mother in media interviews and on digital platforms.
Passing the order, the bench of Justice Milind Jadhav said, “The precedent of the interview (by Mane) is the event of 23.11.2025 (scheduled marriage of Indian cricketer Smriti Mandhana and Muchhal, which was later cancelled), which in my opinion is not prima facie relevant, especially when there is a commercial dispute between the plaintiff (Muchhal) and defendant no. 1 (Mane).”
Muchhal, through his lawyers Siddhesh Bhole, Ashwin Pimple and Shreyas Mithare, had approached the court by filing a suit seeking damages and permanent injunction against Mane for making defamatory statements in the media and print against Muchhal and his family members. The lawyers sought immediate interim ex parte relief and pointed out that Mane’s interviews had “affected his reputation as well as the reputation of his family.”
According to people in the know, Mane is Mandhana’s childhood friend, who had promised to co-produce a film with Muchhal. Muchhal invested a large amount of money, but Mane never brought the promised amount, leading to a dispute between the two. Meanwhile, when the wedding between Muchhal and Mandhana got cancelled, Mane gave interviews, which Muchhal accused of being abusive.
The bench went through the transcripts of Mane’s interviews and found that “the transcripts reveal that there is a business dispute between the plaintiff and defendant no. 1”.
The bench noted Muchhal’s qualifications and said, “The plaintiff is a renowned musician, film producer in the field of Indian music industry and film industry…he is a recipient of six awards.”
After perusing all the materials placed before it, the bench was of the view that an “arguable case has been made out” and directed that Mane be restrained from making “any further references and insinuations of the type and nature attacking the plaintiff and her mother, which have been made in the said interviews, which are prima facie defamatory.”
The legal dispute comes after Mane filed a complaint in Sangli, where he alleged that Muchhal had taken Rs 40 lakh from him for the production of a film which was never completed. The complaint was lodged with the Sangli district police, and documents supporting Mane’s claims were submitted.
Taking to Instagram, Muchhal directly addressed the controversy by sharing an official statement regarding the defamation notice. “My lawyer Shreyansh Mithare has sent a legal notice of Rs 10 crore defamation to Sangli-based Vidyaan Mane for making false, defamatory and highly defamatory allegations made with a deliberate intention to malign my reputation and career,” he posted.
Weeks after his alleged separation with Mandhana, Muchhal is preparing for his next directorial project attitude. Actor Shreyas Talpade will be in the lead role in this.