Nayanthara vs Dhanush: Complete timeline of cold war, public feud between friends turned enemies over Naanum Rowdy Dhaan

Nayanthara and Dhanush, who have been grabbing headlines due to their public feud over a three-second clip from the 2015 blockbuster Naanum Rowdy Dhan (which was produced by him) in her documentary, Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale, were actually friends who have now turned enemies. 

Not many know that this cold war between Nayanthara and Dhanush started in 2015 with the hit, Naanum Rowdy Dhan. Here's a look at the complete timeline of friends-turned-enemies' controversy. 

Dhanush and Nayanthara's friendship 

Nayanthara and Dhanush worked together in the 2018 film, Yaaradi Nee Mohini, where they shared the screen as lead actors. Not only did the actors impress everyone with their chemistry on screen but even their camaraderie during the film’s promotional events was evident, and they appeared to share a strong bond of friendship.

How Naanum Rowdy Dhan gave Nayanthara's career a new lease. 

In 2011, Nayanthara shocked everyone after she announced taking a break from films as at that time, the actress was going through a lot of public scrutinies due to her rumoured affair with Prabhudeva. Later, in 2013, it was Atlee who persuaded her to come back to films with his directorial debut Raja Rani. Though the film was a hit, her next few releases failed to perform well at the box office. 

However, 2015 turned out to be a successful year for Nayanthara. With back-to-back hits like Thani Oruvan and Maya cemented her status as a leading star in the male-dominated industry. She then starred in Naanum Rowdy Dhan opposite Vijay Sethupathi. The film was directed by Vignesh Shivan and Produced by Dhanush. 

Beginning of the Cold War between Dhanush and Nayanthara

During the film's production in 2015, it was reported that Dhanush was unhappy with the process. One of the primary issues appeared to be the film’s escalating budget. Dhanush will continue to watch the film until its completion. However, Nayanthara convinced Dhanush to see the film through completion. 

The film turned out to be a huge hit at the box office, however, despite that, there were rumors the project wasn’t financially beneficial for Dhanush. According to reports, due to delays and cost overruns, he was forced to sell the film at a reduced price. While distributors profited, Dhanush was said to have faced losses. This led to the beginning of a cold war between Dhanush and Nayanthara.

When Nayanthara apologised to Dhanush

During her winning speech at the Filmfare awards, Nayanthara apologised to Dhanush for her performance in Naanum Rowdy Dhaan and said, “Thank you, Dhanush, for initiating NRD (Naanum Rowdy Dhaan), and I have to say I am sorry also. Dhanush absolutely hated my performance in Naanum Rowdy Dhaan. Sorry Dhanush for disappointing you with my performance. I’ll probably make it better next time.” 

Nayanthara VS Dhanush

Now, in 2024, after the trailer of Nayanthara's documentary, Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale, was released, a BTS clip of Naanum Rowdy Dhaan led Dhanush to send a legal notice to the actress and Netflix. Trade analyst Ramesh Bala while speaking to ETimes revealed, “Towards the end of the shooting (Naanum Rowdy Dhaan), Dhanush did not provide the finances to complete the film. Nayanthara spent her own money to complete the film for the love of her life, Vignesh Shivan."

Now, when Nayanthara was making her wedding documentary, she wanted to use BTS clips and the film's love songs, however, Dhanush rejected NOC despite the actress trying for two years and thus, Netflix redirected the documentary around her life rather than just the wedding. However, the actress used a three-second clip from the film in the documentary, which she recorded on her phone. However, it didn't sit well with Dhanush, who slammed her with Rs 10 crore notice to remove the clip, claiming it was owned by him.

Nayanthara open letter to Dhanush

On November 16, Nayanthara penned an open letter to Dhanush criticising him for not giving a NOC and then demanding Rs 10 crore as compensation for not removing a three-second BTS clip of Naanum Rowdy Dhaan from the documentary trailer. An excerpt from Nayanthara’s lengthy letter read, “What's even more shocking is your legal notice after the release of the trailer of the Netflix Documentary. We were startled to read those lines wherein you questioned the usage of some videos (just 3 seconds) that were shot in our personal devices and that too BTS visuals that are already very much publicly present on social media and claimed a sum of Rs.10 crores as damages for the mere 3 seconds. This is an all-time low from you and speaks so much about your character. I wish you were half the person you portray to be on stage in audio launches in front of your innocent fans but clearly you do not practice what you preach, at least not for me and my partner."

Dhanush responded to the allegations 

Dhanush's lawyer has threatened legal action if the contentious content, which reportedly infringes on his copyright of the film Naanum Rowdy Dhaan, is not removed within 24 hours. The statement reads, “Advice your client to take down the content infringing my client's copyright over the film Naanum Rowdy Dhaan by using the same in your client's documentary named Nayanthara Beyond the Fairytale within 24 hours, failing which my client will be forced to initiate appropriate legal action, including but not limited to seeking damages to a sum of Rs. 10 crores against your client and Netflix India.”

Nayanthara's documentary has finally been released on Netflix, however, the case is still going on and their public feud has divided the internet. While many top actresses came in support of Nayanthara, Dhanush's fans are also not stepping back from supporting the actor in every way possible.

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