How to get deposit amount back from Owner

Hi, We had deposited 1.5L to our owner as deposit amount for our renter house in Bangalore. The owner stays in the US. As we did not like the house much, we have vacated the house within 6 months. But now, the owner is trying to deduct all the painting charges of the whole house from this deposit amount. We do not agree to this as the house does not require paint at all. It is in much better condition from what we had got. Also, that we were not informed anywhere earlier through email or in the agreement that Painting charges of the house will be borne by us. The owner has given us a portion of the deposit amount and says that he will deduct the painting charges. He has now started avoiding our calls and is not ready to even talk to us. We have proof of all email communication/SMS communication/Rental Agreement that we have had with the owner. Kindly suggest what is the best possible way for this problem. If we plan to take the legal route, how much feasible is it to get a conclusion on it and approximately how much of money will we have to shell out?