Madras High Court refuses to extend time granted to actor Vishal for depositing ₹10 crore

The Madras High Court on Tuesday (February 17, 2026) refused to extend the time granted to actor-producer Vishal for depositing ₹10 crore in the court as a condition to stay a single judge’s order directing him to pay ₹57 crore to Lyca Productions towards repayment of a loan of ₹21.29 crore, along with interest at the rate of 30%, obtained by him in 2019.

A Division Bench of Justices C.V. Karthikeyan and K. Kumaresh Babu pointed out another Division Bench of Justices S.M. Subramaniam and Mohammed Shaffiq had granted the interim stay on November 24, 2025 on condition that Mr. Vishal Krishna Reddy, who had filed an appeal against the single judge’s June 2025 order, must deposit ₹10 crore to the credit of the appeal within four weeks.

Thereafter, the actor had filed an application before the Division Bench on December 18, 2025 seeking eight more weeks time to deposit the amount in the court. Since the court ordered notice to Lyca Productions on the application and adjourned the hearing on the matter on a couple of occassions, the time sought by the actor had run out and the application itself had become infructuous.

Loan taken for ‘Marudhu’ movie in 2016

Therefore, the judges refused to extend the time any further and said, Lyca Productions could proceed with an execution petition filed before the single judge for implementing the June 2025 decree. Mr. Vishal had originally taken a loan of ₹21.29 crore from Anbuchezhian of Gopuram Films for making a movie titled Marudhu in 2016. Since the actor could not discharge the liability, Lyca had taken over the loan.

After settling the entire amount to Gopuram Films in different tranches, Lyca made Mr. Vishal sign an agreement on September 29, 2019, agreeing to repay the loan amount to it with 30% interest on or before December 31, 2020. However, since he did not honour the agreement, the production company filed a civil suit against him in 2021 for recovering ₹30.05 crore which included the principal amount as well as interest.

Justice P.T. Asha had decreed the suit in June 2025 and ordered repayment of the principal as well as interest amount which had by then risen to a total of ₹57 crore. She refused to accept the actor’s argument that the levy of interest at the rate of 30% per annum by financiers in the film industry was usurious and against the provisions of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Charging Exorbitant Interest Act, 2003.

Then, the judge recalled the High Court had in Indiabulls’ case (2010) refused to interfere with the 33% interest rate, and held it would not be violative of the provisions of the 2003 Act. In that case, it was categorically held the 2003 Act was intended to intended to protect gullible people who borrow small amounts of loan and not for mammoth loan transactions.

“In the instant case, the defendant (Mr. Vishal) has signed the dotted lines agreeing to pay interest at 30% p.a… After having promised the plaintiff (Lyca) that the amount would be repaid with interest at 30% p.a., the defendant is now attempting to renege on his agreement,” Justice Asha had observed.