The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Filmmakers ready to fight piracy menace

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Sep 29, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Filmmakers ready to fight piracy menace

By Suresh Krishnamoorthy

HYDERABAD, SEPT. 29. The Telugu film industry is ready with a counter-offensive to combat piracy. All they are waiting for is a nod from the State Government.

It will start with the formation of a monitoring committee with industry representatives, the police and the Home Department and the Andhra Pradesh Film Development Corporation. The industry will be represented by G. Adiseshagiri Rao of Padmalaya Films, Allu Arvind of Geeta Arts and D. Suresh Babu of Suresh Productions.

"We had a meeting with the Director-General of Police, S.R. Sukumara, and are ready with the plan that will require Rs. 10 lakhs a month. To begin with, we will fund it and this will pave the way for the Government to put concrete infrastructure in place in future," Mr. Suresh Babu said. The anti-piracy establishment would have a head office in Hyderabad, offices in all 23 district headquarters.

The president, Andhra Pradesh Film Chamber of Commerce, G. Adiseshagiri Rao, said they would try to emulate the latest Tamil Nadu model, which sought to bring piracy under the Goonda Act.

Attitudinal change

Mr. Suresh Babu said work was required on bringing about an attitudinal change in some sections of society. "For example we face a certain resistance from police officers when we go with our complaints. Piracy may not be considered as a grave crime, but it is a crime all right. This needs to be explained to our law enforcers," he said.

What would ultimately be in place would be a task force with industry representatives and the police moving at a moment's notice on receipt of information about piracy, he added.

Director, Krishna Vamsee, said: "We work so hard for weeks, months and years. Someone comes at the last minute and laps it up, robbing us of effort and revenue. How can this be allowed to continue?"

The makers of the recent release, `Sye,' have come up with an innovative idea. "We have used an analogue tool which will help us track the origin of a particular compact disc," said the director, Rajamouli. He said `Simhadri' had lost over Rs. 2 crores due to piracy. In general a film was losing 20 to 25 per cent of revenue that rightfully belonged to the makers, he said.

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