iMac 2009 - Half screen works fine, other half blurred/distorted?

Hey everyone,

Firstly, please pardon my ignorance - I am completely new to the world of the iMac (or any other Mac product, for that matter)

My brother bought an iMac in 2009 for his post-production studio. It was in use till about 6 months ago (early 2014), after which he replaced it with a newer one, when the older one witnessed a display problem. He gave the machine to me, to fix and use, but since I am completely satisfied with my Windows based laptop, I completely ignored it for the last few months.

I finally switched it on recently and discovered what the problem was, so here goes:

Theres a vertical hair-thin line running exactly through the centre of the screen. The right side of this line works just fine. The left side, however, is distorted and blurred. While white and black colours appear fine, any other colour is fuzzy, shaky and seems to have a film of purple or green over it.

Could someone advice what the problem may be? And how much would it cost? I live in Mumbai, India and if anyone knows the prices here, it would be awesome.

Also, are there any DIY solutions for this? I've read through a series of blogs and videos on youtube and I've come across some very strange, yet effective (apparently) ways of fixing the problem - from blowing a hair dryer, to giving the screen a good ol' wipe using an spectacle cleaner and cloth. I haven't given any of the solutions a crack yet, perhaps over the weekend :)

I thank you in advance for taking time off to read this and any suggestions would be certainly appreciated.

Best,

RS