A Thalayolaparambu police station has registered a case against actor Nivin Pauly and director Abrid Shine for allegedly cheating producer P.S. Shamnas of ₹1.90 crore during the making of their 2022 film Mahaveeryar. The courtroom drama, which mixed time travel and fantasy elements, was both a critical and commercial disappointment, according to the complainant.
According to the FIR (No. 808/2025), Shamnas alleges that Pauly and Shine breached his trust by wrongfully profiting at his expense. As per their April 1, 2024 agreement, Shamnas advanced ₹1.90 crore toward production costs. In return, Pauly had promised to refund ₹95 lakh and grant Shamnas co-producer credit on Shine’s next project, Action Hero Biju 2.
The complaint further states that, although the title banner was officially amended from Abrid Shine Productions to Indian Movie Makers (Shamnas’s banner) via the Kerala Film Chamber of Commerce, Pauly later submitted an earlier agreement to a Dubai distributor to falsely claim production rights. Overseas distribution rights—valued at ₹5 crore—were transferred to Home Screen Motion Pictures LLC in Dubai, which paid a ₹2 crore advance under the belief that Mahaveeryar was fully controlled by “Nivin Pauly Juniors.” Shamnas contends this arrangement led to the alleged ₹1.90 crore “duping.”
An arbitration proceeding, directed by the court on June 28, 2025, is already underway under a confidentiality gag order. In an Instagram statement, Pauly clarified that despite these ongoing arbitration proceedings, “a new case has been registered without respecting the court’s directions and by concealing the ongoing arbitration proceedings and manipulating facts.” He affirmed his intention to pursue legal action, concluding, “The truth will prevail.”
The FIR cites Sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating), and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code, along with Section 175(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). SHO Vipin Chandran is leading the investigation, and relevant documents have been forwarded to judicial authorities for further action.
