Delhi Court Directs Saregama To Pay ₹5 Lakh To Singer Anamika Over Song Takedown In Copyright Dispute

The District Court at Saket, New Delhi, has recently awarded Rs. 5 lakh in nominal damages to singer Anamika Sood after her song “Ferrareee” was wrongfully taken down following a copyright strike by Saregama.

The court also declared her the author and owner of the sound recording, turning down Saregama India Ltd's claim of infringement.

In a judgment delivered on April 18, 2026, District Judge Neelam Singh found that Saregama could not show any substantial similarity between Sood's track and its 1957 song “Reshmi Salwar Kurta Jali Da.” The court pointed out that copyright in that sound recording had lapsed in 2017, leaving no basis for an infringement claim in 2021.

Sood had moved the court after her song was removed from YouTube in March 2021 following a copyright strike triggered by Saregama. She sought restoration of the track, a declaration of her rights, and damages for the losses she claimed to have suffered.

According to her case, she produced, wrote and performed “Ferrareee,” and held rights over the sound recording and the underlying works. The song, she said, quickly drew close to two million views after release, backed by significant spending on promotions.

She acknowledged that parts of the tune drew from the Punjabi folk song “Sadke Sadke Jandiya,” but maintained that the final work was her own. The lyrics, arrangement and overall production, she argued, were distinct and the result of her own effort.

She also told the court that talks with Saregama over the song's rights had fallen through, after which the takedown notice was issued. The move, she said, cost her performance opportunities, sponsorships and damaged her reputation.

Saregama took a different line. It argued that the “hook” of Sood's song lifted the core musical element of “Reshmi Salwar Kurta Jali Da,” a track from the film Naya Daur. The company relied on agreements dating back to 1955 with M/s BR Films to assert ownership, and said copying a recognisable portion of a song was enough to establish infringement.

It also dismissed the folk music explanation as an afterthought, insisting that the composition had been used without authorisation.

The court did not accept that argument. It reiterated that copyright in a sound recording lasts for sixty years. Since the song relied on by Saregama was released in 1957, its protection had expired decades later in 2017.

When the two tracks were compared, the differences stood out. The court noted clear distinctions in lyrics, rhythm, structure and overall composition. It also underlined that traditional folk music, being part of the public domain, cannot be exclusively claimed by any one party.

Looking at the songs as a whole, the court applied the lay observer test and found no reason for an average listener to assume that Sood's track was a copy.

Her claim for Rs. 88 lakh in damages, however, did not hold up. The court found that the alleged losses from cancelled events, sponsorships and promotions were not backed by sufficient documentary proof.

Still, the brief removal of the song was not without consequence. The court noted that the track remained unavailable for about five days, during which it lost visibility and viewership.

That, the court held, justified compensation. Sood was awarded Rs 5 lakh in nominal damages, along with a declaration recognising her as the author and owner of the sound recording “Ferrareee.”