AZP Partners : "There are now more clear-cut, professional agreements in Bollywood"

Is Bollywood becoming more aware of copyright?
There has been a trend in the last couple of years, not only in the film industry, of people getting aware of rights. Corporatisation of film industry has caused this. Definitive agreements were not made before but now that people are becoming very aware of rights, more definitive agreements being made.

How is Bollywood changing?
More definitive agreements by producers. Also the big stars are becoming interested in the promotion of movie and money it makes and want a share in the profits. There is a movement away from spoken agreements to agreements written down.

 

 

What protection does Hollywood have if they want to come here and protect their rights?
The problem is the cost and time — 10 years average for a case. They need to get an injunction. It depends on the evidence and complications. There has been an Intellectual Property Appellate Court since 2003 but this does not replace the power of court. Its function is to hear appeals from the various registries when you are trying to register intellectual property or when there is dispute along the way.

How lax is the Copyright Act of 1957?
The Copyright Act of 1957 does make provisions to protect rights but people can be apprehensive because it takes so long in court. Hollywood is not successful when they wait until a week before the movie. This is a problem and court does not like this. Court says so many crores have gone into this movie and will be lost, so they do rule in favour of Bollywood. Hollywood sometimes takes too long. Timing is key. Copyright Act recognises foreign movies as a protected work.

The Copyright Act is sufficient. But courts do not give much weight to IPR or copyright issues. It’s a question of the importance of rich people getting richer compared to a social issues case.

Can Bollywood be successful?
With the Partner/Hitch lawsuit, they could get distribution taken away since the case happened after the movie had been released. Damages are not granted very often. In recent times, courts have been granting them but damages granted are very small. Most stop at the stage of sending legal notice. People go to court only on specific issues. However, there has been a shift in the courts and now it is much easier to get an injunction if you have the documents in place and back up materials. Legal notice should be sent months in advance, before movie is released. But in addition to the Copyright Act, India is a member of the Berne convention, which protects the rights of foreign films.

How have you seen Bollywood become more aware of copyright?
With the corporatisation of the industry, there is a trend toward more documentation, with artist agreements and distribution agreements. There are more examples of people buying the rights from a book writer. People are starting to wonder “does this belong to anyone?” Now, people see it’s free on the internet and don’t think “I can use it.” Instead, “Who does that belong to?” There are now more clear-cut, professional agreements in Bollywood.

How have you seen Hollywood and Bollywood interact on this issue?
American production companies may take legal action but they also want to do business here and don’t want to be the big bad guy coming in.

How else has Bollywood changed?
Bollywood is having a better overall awareness that the work product is an asset. For example, Lagaan is a brand in itself. Krrish has the merchandising angle with Kritik Roshan. Bollywood is becoming aware that its property can be cashed in on.

Everyone is questioning if they have rights which can be cashed in on. They are more aware because of corporatisation and there are more avenues to exploit. The rise of multiplex cinemas means more exposure in media. There is the rise of ringtone, Internet and radio stations. There is a more systematic order, assertion of rights, and documentation of what they have with new ways to exploit. In my eight odd years in practice, I have seen documentation increase.

What would stop Bollywood from copying?
More awareness. Because people ask “Is the US really going to come after us?”, especially with so much paperwork involved

What other problems does Hollywood face?
Too often they begin a case a couple of weeks after release. There is also the hassle of coming over here and being not on home turf.

Differences between Hollywood and Bollywood?
Bollywood is a very informal, word of mouth, trust-based industry. Lots of Americans businesses don’t like that. It is less like that than it used to be but most Indians are willing to work without specifications on contracts. Foreign clients, on the other hand, are particular about getting documentation in place. Indian counterparts don’t want this. They don’t want to feel like they are giving up all their rights. The key is you have to match the language between the two.