Pirates make filmmakers irate

Piracy is that one word which hurts a filmmaker more than the disappointment he faces when his movie fails at the box office. More than the flop, the rampant existence of piracy hurts the film industry, irreparably. Despite stringent laws, public awareness and pleas, the plague remains and is growing stronger. Technology has made it even worse but the fight against piracy is ongoing, and the entertainment industry is at constant war. While the entire film industry is suffering from the plague of piracy, the Kannada film industry is battling its worst effects. Bengaluru Chronicle reports.

“It’s not even been a week since the release of Super Star Rajinikanth starrer 2.0, and the pirated version of the most expensive movie made in India is already available illegally, as the links of the movie are being circulated on social media. Of the many people, even senior police officers have come across such illegal acts. Such is the audacity of the piracy brigade. We have given a written complaint to the police to act against those who have violated the copyright act, and to initiate action against perpetrators as per law,” says Gandasi Sadananda, honourary president of Karnataka State Rajinikanth Fans Association.

Recently, irked over repeated instances of the practice, the producer’s council in Tamil Nadu had reportedly barred at least 10 theatres across Karnataka and Tamil Nadu from releasing any movie.

During the release of the film, The Villain which had garnered a lot of positive feedback for its star cast — the two biggest star actors in the Kannada industry — Kichcha Sudeepa and Shivarjkumar, coming together for the first time, the makers had requested the audience not to indulge in any such acts.

“It is very difficult to monitor piracy. It is highly impractical to check each and every one. It is the audience who has to understand that it is their movie, and should be enjoyed in theatres. I myself do not have a satellite services to watch movies. I go to multiplexes to watch movies. Movies are most enjoyed when watched inside a theatre set up,” Century Star Shivarajkumar had said during the release of The Villain.

In fact, a majority of film makers tend to approach the police to act against piracy. “There are stringent laws such as the Goonda Act. It is the cinema lover who has to first say no to piracy. If there is no market for such illegal acts then fighting them becomes easy,” says producer Uday.

Actress Manvitha Kamath who witnessed a majority of the audience had already seen her movie Kendasampige online, has referred to this phenomenon as a ‘piracy star’ in a lighter vein, while stressing on the need for more awareness.