Piracy is becoming a big threat for the film industry and after the recent ‘Tera Kya Hoga Johnny’ fiasco, everyone’s wondering about Bollywood’s next moves...
They inspire us, fascinate us, entertain and enlighten us, and at times they make us cry too, but more often than not, they help us to set our sorrows aside. The highlight of several light evenings with friends and family, films influence our lives in several ways. The least we could do in return is to pay the filmmakers their due and to take a stand against piracy. Piracy, or unauthorised copying and distribution of movies and music, is a crime. And the fact of the matter is, most of us, at some point or the other, download music, buy pirated movies, or watch movies on video sharing websites like YouTube. Different countries have different laws on copyright infringement but some people see it as evolution as a result of the rise of the Internet. But in all of this the people who suffer the most are the ones who have invested money, time and emotion in the movie, yet are deprived of what is rightfully theirs. One can’t possibly fathom the loss the producers, who invest a sizeable fortune into their films, incur.
Recently, the Neil Nitin Mukesh starrer and Sudhir Mishra directed film Tera Kya Hoga Johnny, in the final stages of post production, was leaked out on YouTube. Manu Kumaran, the producer of the film, had spent Rs. 12 crores on it. Understandably, this has caused an uproar in the Hindi film industry. Though pirated CDs are a common sight post the release of a film, something like this did come as a shock to most. “I think it is very unfortunate and very unfair to Sudhir and to the film and the whole industry that somebody from within the industry is catering to the black market and promoting piracy. Under the code of law, whatever the punishment is, it should be meted out to them as it is an absolutely unpardonable offence. All forms of piracy are bad; YouTube has the maximum reach and its misuse is widespread. I have heard of movies being downloaded from the Internet when they haven’t even come out. This is almost like putting it in the newspaper and providing it to everybody free of cost! It seems like somebody is mocking at the whole system and I think extreme measures should be taken,” says actor, director, producer, Vinay Pathak.
Even the Amitabh and Abhishek Bachchan starrer Paa was out on the same website on the very day the film was released. Though the Bachchans did try to get it removed from the Internet, little could be done, for in a very little time the damage had already been done. What the filmmakers can do is, mark their movies with Coded Anti-Piracy or CAP technology. This is a system with which each print of the movie can be marked with a distinguished pattern of dots, which can be used as a forensic identifier. So, with the help of this technology the source of illegal copies can be zeroed in on.
“Spread awareness; ensure within the studios or during the sound or dubbing or mixing that it’s a clean process and a clean studio because the theft could happen from anywhere. And one wouldn’t know when it has happened. I know Sudhir, I have worked with him, and I have great regard for him. I know how much effort he puts into everything he does. My heart goes out to him,” added Pathak. Let’s hope that stringent laws are made and enforced to keep the pirates from sinking the film industry. Meanwhile, we as individuals need to stop encouraging all forms of piracy. For sure, Rs. 100 for a ticket shouldn’t pinch much as compared to the losses that go into millions of rupees for the filmmakers.
They inspire us, fascinate us, entertain and enlighten us, and at times they make us cry too, but more often than not, they help us to set our sorrows aside. The highlight of several light evenings with friends and family, films influence our lives in several ways. The least we could do in return is to pay the filmmakers their due and to take a stand against piracy. Piracy, or unauthorised copying and distribution of movies and music, is a crime. And the fact of the matter is, most of us, at some point or the other, download music, buy pirated movies, or watch movies on video sharing websites like YouTube. Different countries have different laws on copyright infringement but some people see it as evolution as a result of the rise of the Internet. But in all of this the people who suffer the most are the ones who have invested money, time and emotion in the movie, yet are deprived of what is rightfully theirs. One can’t possibly fathom the loss the producers, who invest a sizeable fortune into their films, incur.
Recently, the Neil Nitin Mukesh starrer and Sudhir Mishra directed film Tera Kya Hoga Johnny, in the final stages of post production, was leaked out on YouTube. Manu Kumaran, the producer of the film, had spent Rs. 12 crores on it. Understandably, this has caused an uproar in the Hindi film industry. Though pirated CDs are a common sight post the release of a film, something like this did come as a shock to most. “I think it is very unfortunate and very unfair to Sudhir and to the film and the whole industry that somebody from within the industry is catering to the black market and promoting piracy. Under the code of law, whatever the punishment is, it should be meted out to them as it is an absolutely unpardonable offence. All forms of piracy are bad; YouTube has the maximum reach and its misuse is widespread. I have heard of movies being downloaded from the Internet when they haven’t even come out. This is almost like putting it in the newspaper and providing it to everybody free of cost! It seems like somebody is mocking at the whole system and I think extreme measures should be taken,” says actor, director, producer, Vinay Pathak.
Even the Amitabh and Abhishek Bachchan starrer Paa was out on the same website on the very day the film was released. Though the Bachchans did try to get it removed from the Internet, little could be done, for in a very little time the damage had already been done. What the filmmakers can do is, mark their movies with Coded Anti-Piracy or CAP technology. This is a system with which each print of the movie can be marked with a distinguished pattern of dots, which can be used as a forensic identifier. So, with the help of this technology the source of illegal copies can be zeroed in on.
“Spread awareness; ensure within the studios or during the sound or dubbing or mixing that it’s a clean process and a clean studio because the theft could happen from anywhere. And one wouldn’t know when it has happened. I know Sudhir, I have worked with him, and I have great regard for him. I know how much effort he puts into everything he does. My heart goes out to him,” added Pathak. Let’s hope that stringent laws are made and enforced to keep the pirates from sinking the film industry. Meanwhile, we as individuals need to stop encouraging all forms of piracy. For sure, Rs. 100 for a ticket shouldn’t pinch much as compared to the losses that go into millions of rupees for the filmmakers.
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