Producers Guild of India applauds the BJP government for making amendments in the Cinematography Act of 1952

To curb the menace of piracy and copyright infringement, yesterday the cabinet announced the amendments in the Cinematograph Act of 1952. And today, The Producers Guild of India thanked the Government for taking the initiative and approving the changes.

The big approval came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently made the announcement on the subject of tackling the menace of cam-cording and film piracy during the inaugural function of the National Museum of Indian cinema, on January 19.

The film industry is obviously delighted with the move and Siddharth Roy Kapur, who is the President of Producers Guild of India, said in a statement, “This is a significant move to protect intellectual property in our country. This communicates to all stakeholders that as a country we respect and reward innovation and creativity, and will ensure that the rights of owners and creators of this intellectual property are safeguard.”

According to the new amendments, no person without the written authorisation of the author is permitted to use any audio-visual recording device to knowingly make or transmit or attempt to make or transmit a copy of a film or a part thereof. That’s not all! If a person is found guilty, he could spend three years behind the bars or could be fined Rs 10 lakh for violation of the rule. In the worst case scenario, the person could be imprisoned and fined as well.

Since the film industry has been demanding these amendments for a very long time, the announcement surely came as a big relief. It is expected that this move will curb piracy and help the industry in increasing its revenue. Interestingly, such amendments have already been accepted by many industry bodies nationally and internationally. So it’s indeed a positive move for the Indian film industry too.